The SE WC Delusion...

[chendosplastic]

Lately, I've found myself wondering, esp in the light of the S/Final target for the SE, what is wrong with us...

Is this simply arrogance or sheer stupidity?

2. Ninety-five percent or more of the teams going to the WC started building their teams four years ago. Many of them completed the squad building exercise thru the qualifiers, a regional tournament and/or the confederations cup, and regularly scheduled friendlies.

3. Those whose teams stumbled along the way, or showed persistent vulnerabilities thru these games, were able to make corrections or simply changed managers.

4. By February this year, most of these teams played their last friendlies and finalized plans for their camping and final preparatory games.

5. In spite of all this meticulous planning, many of the teams have set themselves modest targets, either in terms of points haul or 2nd round appearance.

6. But not Nigeria! We go to the WC the least prepared team, but yet have the audacity to set and actually expect a s/final finish. I mean, what am I missing here? Is it that football is that simple or that we have some secret formula?

7. We spent two locust years monkeying about with a coach we knew was not improving the team, in spite of the results. We spent two years f00ling around with a coach whose three previous stints had repeatedly delivered the same weaknesses in team organization, the same lack of in depth knowledge of tactics...

8. Then we had the ANC, which gifts African teams a chance to finalize preparations in a world cup year. We had a chance to take decisive action on the coaching personnel and begin the process of making amends. But No! We were told by the NFF that they had the coach they wanted and that he would lead the team to the WC...

9. Lo and behold, after the ignominy of losing to the Ghana U-21 team, we have made a u-turn by hiring Lagerback as the NFF officials look to save their collective arses, with Eguavoen as assistant and thus the next man to be recycled in the unending game of coaching carousel!

10. We may yet succeed in spite of ourselves in SA, and frankly I hope we do not, for the sake of our football long term..I have one regret and one joy though. I regret that we did not allow Amodu take us to the illogical conclusion of this farce. But I am joyful that we did not pass this poisoned chalice on Siasia and destroy a budding coaching career. I'll happily take a swede!

11. I look forward to the world cup. But sadly, Nigeria is only an insignificant part of it...

It is arrogance and sheer stupidity.

Sadly, it is not the first time. We are Farked.

Abeg spare me the balony and use your panties to wipe your tears while passing to txj to keep his sobing from gushing out like a river.

Who cares. You are not happy Amodu is not going. I could not be bothered about who the Coach is. Therein lies the difference. Whoever the Coach is, I will be hoping and wishing for the best of my team, unlike many here who are bitter and twisted to the extent that they want to cut their noses to spite their faces. As for Amodu's faith, I could not careless. Do I believe getting rid of him was the right thing. YES! I do. Because he and his team were complete and utter shyte.

I have said many a time here I am not in favour of the Coach conditions of employment. For me, it is a waste of scarce resources which could have been better served in the development of our game. For me, any Coach, other than the hopeless and clueless Amodu, willing to accept far less terms as condition of employment would have been better and there were many out there in Nigeria and abroad.

For one more time, may I state that it is very unfortunate that folks have decided to reduce any discuss on the wc to an Amodu supporters vesus Amodu Bashers (whoever coined those ) contest. It really is an insult to our collective intellect.

[chendosplastic]

TXJ,

What is the point of this thread?

That SE fans are delusional? That NFF are delusional? or that the same Arsenal fans who believe that Tiki-taky football is a measure of a good team? WTF is the point of this thread? Oh! I get it, Amodu is the reason why Nigeria Football team is it's present mess?


When fans some of which showed up on this very thread were the champions of "Amodu must Go", like Amodu was the problem with our Eagles? When I read some of you later day preachers of how we are not going to do well in the WC, I can't help but ask myself why didn't some of you guys shout like this before the coach who has had the experience of working with our inept FA got canned?

I mean a thread where someone says "7. We spent two locust years monkeying about with a coach we knew was not improving the team, in spite of the results. We spent two years f00ling around with a coach whose three previous stints had repeatedly delivered the same weaknesses in team organization, the same lack of in depth knowledge of tactics..."

That takes the cake...

Sports is about RESULTS!!! You all can take your feelings and shove it where the sun don't shine... I mean what-else should he have done?

For goodness sake you all said he will be exposed sooner or later... I guess losing to a Ghana team we have had problems beating even if they fielded Ashanti Kotoko team is now grounds of "in-spite of Amodu"?

You have the temerity to tell us about SE being delusional... that delusion was caused and created by Amodu over achieving. If he had failed like you all predicted you would have been busy taking up Ghanaian, Cameroonian, Ivorien, Algerian, and Tunisian citizenship for this mundial.

Largaback is the only coach going into this WC without ANY (ZERO) pressure or expectations... the NFF has already built-in an already made excuse for him. And unfortunately, folks like you are writing prose about "SE WC Delusion"... The reality is that Nigerians are our own worst enemies... If Amodu did not EARN the right to take the team to the WC, who does?

I have a feeling you will want to share some more of your feelings with us... but when it comes to FACTS you guys will be left going back to your feelings.

I agree with you sir! But is you bash Arsenal fans laik dis again eh, na slllaaaaaap igo whoooos dat ya face!!!

[nemi2002]

So txj is happy Amodu was sacked but not happy with the timing. He is also unhappy with the target set by the NFF for the new coach describing the target as a delusion, when exactly did he realise this? However Lagerback has not come out to say the target is delusional after publicly accepting to meet the target and stating that it was feasible.

Well, Amodu met his targets despite his shortcomings, hope Lagerback will meet his set target playing Arsenal like football and I hope he will be placed under the same scrutiny Amodu was placed!

Lagerback is on an ALL expenses paid vacation! Yes the semi final according to him but you can be sure he is not interested. He is only interested in the money and you can be sure he will enjoy his millions. Personally I dont blame him.

don't be silly, who vacations in Nigeria?

He is not being silly, Lagerback is on all expenses vacation in South Africa from sometime next month till the SEs drop out of the competition.

BTW a lot of people go on vacation in Nigeria at places like the Obudu cattle ranch and Tinapa!!!

[chendosplastic]

this thread nah faya.. the thread starter is currently crying behind his firewall.. see wetin una don do to this clueless wowo.. ooo

get this into your knuckle head WOWO.. it was very silly for Nigeria to change coaches at this time.. my question is why couldn't they do it right after july 11th? fyi dumb WOWOs Amodu was let not because of football reasons, but because of the funds made available prior to the worldcup..Even if Amodu had won the ANC he was still going to be let go.. nothing more nothing less....

Make I highlight am, maybe dem go get am!

[txj]

EII, yaya:

Interestingly the two of u are the only ones actually discussing the issue.

For one, yaya's position has never been different from mine: a clueless NFF that persisted a clueless coach for two years until weeks b/4 the WC deserves to have the same coach lead them down the grave.

2ndly, the point of the thread is about the mess that is the NFF and how the so-called target is simply nonesensical. I am not saying they should'nt set a target, or am I making excuses for LB. I am simply saying that the target of a s/final finish is a serious challenge, requiring serious people and serious planning. To set such a target with everything the NFF has done, is simply delusional.

Wrt what the target should be, I am suprised u even ask the question. Months ago I stated we would be extremely lucky to get 4pts. Based on that, the issue of a target becomes a mute point, in fact irrelevant. This is a team primed to fail and deserves to fail, and for the sake of our football, long term, needs to fail!

Asking me to recommend a target is like asking me to disavow my essay; its akin to asking me to engage in the very same charade that I am railing against! Frankly, anything short of an open admission of a hopeless case and thus wholehearted reliance on the grace of God is nothing short of delusional...

Of course as a Nigerian I wish them well, and I hope to be pleasantly suprised, but frankly I am looking fwd to the WC without Nigeria in mind...Simply put, I don't care!

yaya:

Sure everyone in the competition including North Korea hopes to win the Cup but teams do have realistic targets which help to determine success or failure and that does not have to be winning the Cup. For instance, Brazil, Italy, and the like would have the target of winning the cup but that isn't our target. The NFF (actually from the lead of the NSC) set a semi-final target for Nigeria based precisely on past achievement but also because Nigeria will be at home in Africa. Point is that if such a target is delusional, then we want txj to tell us a target that wouldn't be delusional but reasonable. Importantly, it ought to be one that warrants the appointment of Lagerback considering that the target itself was a major consideration for bringing him in "as Amodu was not expected to go that far (?)." if we are to believe analysts on CE.

Just a note, I believe the NFF expects Nigeria to set a landmark by being the African team to get to the semis. Quarters really would mean merely equallying Cameroon and Senegal (a team that has not even won the ANCs that we won twice). Moreover, those two reached the quarters in competitions played outside the continent. To top it off, the NFF are paying top dollar for a foreign coach that we have been told holds the magic wand. Thus, the NFF are arguably very reasonable in the target that they have set.

txj:

The point is that I have read through your responses and you are yet to tell us what a reasonable target ought to be if a semi-final target is delusional. Apparently, you have a scheme that allows you to be able to concludse a semi-final target as delusional. Is it possible that the scheme allows you to brave what a reasonable target ought to be for Lagerback? What should it be? It is a simple question.

for me, a set target as always is to win the whole thing. HOWEVER, what the coach should be told is that anything less than __________________ is completely unacceptable. I am a reasonable man, I see that we have never gotten past the second round. Thus, our aim , of course, should always be to surpass our past achievement. As a result, the coach should be told that anything less than quater-finals is a failure. simple as that.

[anaedo1]

I have been carried away by some of the postings under this interesting topic on Lagerback's delusional tendency.There is no denial of the fact that he promised a semi-final berth for the Nigerian Super Eagles upon being hired.Now was that promise instrumental to his final choice as our coach-you bet, but will he deliver as stated, the answer is an emphatic NO based on the evidence on the ground.

I am yet to read of any football country who has qualified for the WC semi-final following a lack luster preparation and with much behind the scene bunglings as our own squad and NFF.The world cup is the most exciting and prestigious sporting event in the whole World,one for which most countries undergo a long and arduous preparation in order to excel.

Nigeria hired Lagerback after he failed to qualify Sweden for the same WC, he is now being paid millions to take our team to in the belief that we will surpass previous African record by reaching the Semi-Final.
While I believe that Nigeria has the potential to attain that height some day, however, our present squad,ill-timed coaching change and desultory preparation have all conspired to truncate that objective.

Initially when Lagerback proclaimed to the world that he was going to take us to the semi-final, my first reaction was yes we can if he has a good plan .At the time I wished he had the clearness of purpose on how to galvanize our players scattered around Europe, the conviction to navigate the morass that is our NFF and a definite schedule of friendly matches. Of course, we now know that he is more clueless than possibly Berti Vogts and in my opinion worse than his predecessor.

So the only explanation for his semi-final forecast was the urge to block an anxiety provoking desire (failing his employers) by believing and expressing the opposite. He knew from the outset that he could not deliver the target set for him but since he needed the money soon after falling out of favor with the Swedish FA, compromised his conscience. He in essence covered up his lack of belief in our team and our NFF by making all of us accept the possibility of a semi-final proposition, completely antithetical to his inner premise.

Yes, we would be deluded into accepting the S/F target as possible all being considered and will be lucky if we reach the second round.
Our focus should be long-term and that will need a complete overhaul of our football house including hiring an indigenous coach that will pool all our good players into a formidable force towards winning the 2012 ACN and easy qualification for the 2014 WC in Brazil.

I am not married to bringing back Amodu yet again despite my belief that he should have been the coach managing our current WC effort, but nevertheless, insist on an indigenous coach as our best alternative.

All that said,I look forward to seeing our players give their best in the following weeks and hope that on June 12 they will not fold to a fiercesome Argentinian side despite the failings of our current coach.

[txj]

Sadly thats what CE has decended to...There is little or no serious football discussion going on here anymore. Its a matter of how fast Robbynice can scratch his arse and come up with a silly acronym...

Nice writeup txj ! Some of y'all are misunderstanding/mislabeling him as a WOWO/ABA/WAYC. Here he is not laying the blame at the coach but at the mishandling of our preparations by the NFF (ie friendlies etc).

That's my take too. It's clear some people have either difficulty understanding his post or hold some kind of vendetta.

[tedder89]

While you have missed the whole point of the thread which is to do with Nigerians' delusional expectations and not a referandum on Amodu's ability or lack thereof, I feel I need to respond to your questions

Do you think a team with a midfield that was molested by Benin while the coach did nothing will triumph in our groups?

Molested? Really? So we didn't overrun them in midfield so they "molested" us? We beat France in their backyard with a polished, confident and accomplished performance. Does that mean France will not make it out of their group?

Do you think a team that does not make runs off the ball, does not have any set piece routines or any idea what to do at them, that does not seem to have a clue will qualify for the 2nd round?

Go back and watch the first half against Egypt, take somee notes then get back to me about passing, movement, strength of purpose and all round quality of play. The set piece argument is valid but that has been a weakness under ALL coaches, not just Amodu.

Do you think that performances against Zambia are acceptable

Again, it was not a walk in the park. Get off your high horse and stop expecting us to steam roll everyone. We have average players whose confidence was shot to pieces (see my signature). It was a tough game but we won. We played much better against a better Ghana team, created many clear cut chances and ended up losing. Football no be 1 + 1....

I should say that while I have never cared for Amodu (even back in 1995 when he first got the gig), I would not have fired him after the ANC. I would have grinned and borne the humiliation we would have received this summer and looked towards Gabon and Brazil with hope as this is the cross every football fan must bear.

I would like to ask some questions though?

Do you think a team with a midfield that was molested by Benin while the coach did nothing will triumph in our groups?
Do you think a team that does not make runs off the ball, does not have any set piece routines or any idea what to do at them, that does not seem to have a clue will qualify for the 2nd round?
Do you think that performances against Zambia are acceptable?

[tedder89]

You're mistaken; the NFF bigwigs (Lulu and Ogunjobi) were going to keep Amodu untill the pressure from the PTF became unbearable. Once it became obvious there was money set aside for a new coach to be hired; the vultures started circling.

The clamor from Nigerians for change made it easier for the hustlers to carry out the plan because it provided justification. The catalyst was the money on the ground. It is very likely that Lulu and Ogunjobi got a cut from the LB deal but make no mistake they were told in no uncertain terms that there was no way they could save Amodu and they realized staking political capital on trying to keep him was not worth their while.

Thiere is nothing new here, we have been down this road before, both in 1998 and 2002.

Lately, I've found myself wondering, esp in the light of the S/Final target for the SE, what is wrong with us...

Is this simply arrogance or sheer stupidity?

2. Ninety-five percent or more of the teams going to the WC started building their teams four years ago. Many of them completed the squad building exercise thru the qualifiers, a regional tournament and/or the confederations cup, and regularly scheduled friendlies.

3. Those whose teams stumbled along the way, or showed persistent vulnerabilities thru these games, were able to make corrections or simply changed managers.

4. By February this year, most of these teams played their last friendlies and finalized plans for their camping and final preparatory games.

5. In spite of all this meticulous planning, many of the teams have set themselves modest targets, either in terms of points haul or 2nd round appearance.

6. But not Nigeria! We go to the WC the least prepared team, but yet have the audacity to set and actually expect a s/final finish. I mean, what am I missing here? Is it that football is that simple or that we have some secret formula?

7. We spent two locust years monkeying about with a coach we knew was not improving the team, in spite of the results. We spent two years f00ling around with a coach whose three previous stints had repeatedly delivered the same weaknesses in team organization, the same lack of in depth knowledge of tactics...

8. Then we had the ANC, which gifts African teams a chance to finalize preparations in a world cup year. We had a chance to take decisive action on the coaching personnel and begin the process of making amends. But No! We were told by the NFF that they had the coach they wanted and that he would lead the team to the WC...

9. Lo and behold, after the ignominy of losing to the Ghana U-21 team, we have made a u-turn by hiring Lagerback as the NFF officials look to save their collective arses, with Eguavoen as assistant and thus the next man to be recycled in the unending game of coaching carousel!

10. We may yet succeed in spite of ourselves in SA, and frankly I hope we do not, for the sake of our football long term..I have one regret and one joy though. I regret that we did not allow Amodu take us to the illogical conclusion of this farce. But I am joyful that we did not pass this poisoned chalice on Siasia and destroy a budding coaching career. I'll happily take a swede!

11. I look forward to the world cup. But sadly, Nigeria is only an insignificant part of it...

[txj]

U are sadly badly misinformed. The NFF went to the presidency asking for money to hire an FC during the WCQs, more than a year ago. Their gamble backfired and they got saddled with the PTF...

You're mistaken; the NFF bigwigs (Lulu and Ogunjobi) were going to keep Amodu untill the pressure from the PTF became unbearable. Once it became obvious there was money set aside for a new coach to be hired; the vultures started circling.

The clamor from Nigerians for change made it easier for the hustlers to carry out the plan because it provided justification. The catalyst was the money on the ground. It is very likely that Lulu and Ogunjobi got a cut from the LB deal but make no mistake they were told in no uncertain terms that there was no way they could save Amodu and they realized staking political capital on trying to keep him was not worth their while.

Thiere is nothing new here, we have been down this road before, both in 1998 and 2002.

Lately, I've found myself wondering, esp in the light of the S/Final target for the SE, what is wrong with us...

Is this simply arrogance or sheer stupidity?

2. Ninety-five percent or more of the teams going to the WC started building their teams four years ago. Many of them completed the squad building exercise thru the qualifiers, a regional tournament and/or the confederations cup, and regularly scheduled friendlies.

3. Those whose teams stumbled along the way, or showed persistent vulnerabilities thru these games, were able to make corrections or simply changed managers.

4. By February this year, most of these teams played their last friendlies and finalized plans for their camping and final preparatory games.

5. In spite of all this meticulous planning, many of the teams have set themselves modest targets, either in terms of points haul or 2nd round appearance.

6. But not Nigeria! We go to the WC the least prepared team, but yet have the audacity to set and actually expect a s/final finish. I mean, what am I missing here? Is it that football is that simple or that we have some secret formula?

7. We spent two locust years monkeying about with a coach we knew was not improving the team, in spite of the results. We spent two years f00ling around with a coach whose three previous stints had repeatedly delivered the same weaknesses in team organization, the same lack of in depth knowledge of tactics...

8. Then we had the ANC, which gifts African teams a chance to finalize preparations in a world cup year. We had a chance to take decisive action on the coaching personnel and begin the process of making amends. But No! We were told by the NFF that they had the coach they wanted and that he would lead the team to the WC...

9. Lo and behold, after the ignominy of losing to the Ghana U-21 team, we have made a u-turn by hiring Lagerback as the NFF officials look to save their collective arses, with Eguavoen as assistant and thus the next man to be recycled in the unending game of coaching carousel!

10. We may yet succeed in spite of ourselves in SA, and frankly I hope we do not, for the sake of our football long term..I have one regret and one joy though. I regret that we did not allow Amodu take us to the illogical conclusion of this farce. But I am joyful that we did not pass this poisoned chalice on Siasia and destroy a budding coaching career. I'll happily take a swede!

11. I look forward to the world cup. But sadly, Nigeria is only an insignificant part of it...

[tedder89]

There you go again with the smart comments; both events are not mutually exclusive, Einstein. The PTF "support" came about because the Sports Ministry did not want to hire a foreign coach at the time.

Lulu especially was pretty confident that WC qualification and ANC semis would be enough hence the repeated comments he made to the press about what Amodu needed to do to keep his job.

U are sadly badly misinformed. The NFF went to the presidency asking for money to hire an FC during the WCQs, more than a year ago. Their gamble backfired and they got saddled with the PTF...

You're mistaken; the NFF bigwigs (Lulu and Ogunjobi) were going to keep Amodu untill the pressure from the PTF became unbearable. Once it became obvious there was money set aside for a new coach to be hired; the vultures started circling.

The clamor from Nigerians for change made it easier for the hustlers to carry out the plan because it provided justification. The catalyst was the money on the ground. It is very likely that Lulu and Ogunjobi got a cut from the LB deal but make no mistake they were told in no uncertain terms that there was no way they could save Amodu and they realized staking political capital on trying to keep him was not worth their while.

Thiere is nothing new here, we have been down this road before, both in 1998 and 2002.

Lately, I've found myself wondering, esp in the light of the S/Final target for the SE, what is wrong with us...

Is this simply arrogance or sheer stupidity?

2. Ninety-five percent or more of the teams going to the WC started building their teams four years ago. Many of them completed the squad building exercise thru the qualifiers, a regional tournament and/or the confederations cup, and regularly scheduled friendlies.

3. Those whose teams stumbled along the way, or showed persistent vulnerabilities thru these games, were able to make corrections or simply changed managers.

4. By February this year, most of these teams played their last friendlies and finalized plans for their camping and final preparatory games.

5. In spite of all this meticulous planning, many of the teams have set themselves modest targets, either in terms of points haul or 2nd round appearance.

6. But not Nigeria! We go to the WC the least prepared team, but yet have the audacity to set and actually expect a s/final finish. I mean, what am I missing here? Is it that football is that simple or that we have some secret formula?

7. We spent two locust years monkeying about with a coach we knew was not improving the team, in spite of the results. We spent two years f00ling around with a coach whose three previous stints had repeatedly delivered the same weaknesses in team organization, the same lack of in depth knowledge of tactics...

8. Then we had the ANC, which gifts African teams a chance to finalize preparations in a world cup year. We had a chance to take decisive action on the coaching personnel and begin the process of making amends. But No! We were told by the NFF that they had the coach they wanted and that he would lead the team to the WC...

9. Lo and behold, after the ignominy of losing to the Ghana U-21 team, we have made a u-turn by hiring Lagerback as the NFF officials look to save their collective arses, with Eguavoen as assistant and thus the next man to be recycled in the unending game of coaching carousel!

10. We may yet succeed in spite of ourselves in SA, and frankly I hope we do not, for the sake of our football long term..I have one regret and one joy though. I regret that we did not allow Amodu take us to the illogical conclusion of this farce. But I am joyful that we did not pass this poisoned chalice on Siasia and destroy a budding coaching career. I'll happily take a swede!

11. I look forward to the world cup. But sadly, Nigeria is only an insignificant part of it...

[platinum]

txj,

It's either/or with us as usual. I wouldnt be surprised if we crashed and burned in the first round, but frankly i wouldnt be surprised to see us knocking on the quarterfinal door.
We are unpredictable.
As far as preparations go, we seem to thrive in chaos.
The structure of the team is set, lets see what input Lagerback will have. It would be foolish for him to do anything dramatic and going by his team list, he recognizes that.
As far as the semi-final target set for him, the less said the better.

[txj]

Dude, do urself a favor and scroll thru the archives. The PTF was foisted on the NFF when they- Lulu and Ogunjobi, went lobbying the Presidency for funds to hire an FC...

There you go again with the smart comments; both events are not mutually exclusive, Einstein. The PTF "support" came about because the Sports Ministry did not want to hire a foreign coach at the time.

Lulu especially was pretty confident that WC qualification and ANC semis would be enough hence the repeated comments he made to the press about what Amodu needed to do to keep his job.

U are sadly badly misinformed. The NFF went to the presidency asking for money to hire an FC during the WCQs, more than a year ago. Their gamble backfired and they got saddled with the PTF...

You're mistaken; the NFF bigwigs (Lulu and Ogunjobi) were going to keep Amodu untill the pressure from the PTF became unbearable. Once it became obvious there was money set aside for a new coach to be hired; the vultures started circling.

The clamor from Nigerians for change made it easier for the hustlers to carry out the plan because it provided justification. The catalyst was the money on the ground. It is very likely that Lulu and Ogunjobi got a cut from the LB deal but make no mistake they were told in no uncertain terms that there was no way they could save Amodu and they realized staking political capital on trying to keep him was not worth their while.

Thiere is nothing new here, we have been down this road before, both in 1998 and 2002.

Lately, I've found myself wondering, esp in the light of the S/Final target for the SE, what is wrong with us...

Is this simply arrogance or sheer stupidity?

2. Ninety-five percent or more of the teams going to the WC started building their teams four years ago. Many of them completed the squad building exercise thru the qualifiers, a regional tournament and/or the confederations cup, and regularly scheduled friendlies.

3. Those whose teams stumbled along the way, or showed persistent vulnerabilities thru these games, were able to make corrections or simply changed managers.

4. By February this year, most of these teams played their last friendlies and finalized plans for their camping and final preparatory games.

5. In spite of all this meticulous planning, many of the teams have set themselves modest targets, either in terms of points haul or 2nd round appearance.

6. But not Nigeria! We go to the WC the least prepared team, but yet have the audacity to set and actually expect a s/final finish. I mean, what am I missing here? Is it that football is that simple or that we have some secret formula?

7. We spent two locust years monkeying about with a coach we knew was not improving the team, in spite of the results. We spent two years f00ling around with a coach whose three previous stints had repeatedly delivered the same weaknesses in team organization, the same lack of in depth knowledge of tactics...

8. Then we had the ANC, which gifts African teams a chance to finalize preparations in a world cup year. We had a chance to take decisive action on the coaching personnel and begin the process of making amends. But No! We were told by the NFF that they had the coach they wanted and that he would lead the team to the WC...

9. Lo and behold, after the ignominy of losing to the Ghana U-21 team, we have made a u-turn by hiring Lagerback as the NFF officials look to save their collective arses, with Eguavoen as assistant and thus the next man to be recycled in the unending game of coaching carousel!

10. We may yet succeed in spite of ourselves in SA, and frankly I hope we do not, for the sake of our football long term..I have one regret and one joy though. I regret that we did not allow Amodu take us to the illogical conclusion of this farce. But I am joyful that we did not pass this poisoned chalice on Siasia and destroy a budding coaching career. I'll happily take a swede!

11. I look forward to the world cup. But sadly, Nigeria is only an insignificant part of it...

[tedder89]

Either you have a comprehension deficit or your meds have run out; take a deep breath and read what I wrote.

Lulu and Ogunjobi's request to the Presudency was before the end of WC qualification and Amodu has gone on record as saying he was always aware that there waer plans being made to hire a TA; this is public knowledge.

Once WC qualification was assured, Lulu and Ogunjobi publicly set the ANC semi final target which was met.

Dude, do urself a favor and scroll thru the archives. The PTF was foisted on the NFF when they- Lulu and Ogunjobi, went lobbying the Presidency for funds to hire an FC...

There you go again with the smart comments; both events are not mutually exclusive, Einstein. The PTF "support" came about because the Sports Ministry did not want to hire a foreign coach at the time.

Lulu especially was pretty confident that WC qualification and ANC semis would be enough hence the repeated comments he made to the press about what Amodu needed to do to keep his job.

U are sadly badly misinformed. The NFF went to the presidency asking for money to hire an FC during the WCQs, more than a year ago. Their gamble backfired and they got saddled with the PTF...

You're mistaken; the NFF bigwigs (Lulu and Ogunjobi) were going to keep Amodu untill the pressure from the PTF became unbearable. Once it became obvious there was money set aside for a new coach to be hired; the vultures started circling.

The clamor from Nigerians for change made it easier for the hustlers to carry out the plan because it provided justification. The catalyst was the money on the ground. It is very likely that Lulu and Ogunjobi got a cut from the LB deal but make no mistake they were told in no uncertain terms that there was no way they could save Amodu and they realized staking political capital on trying to keep him was not worth their while.

Thiere is nothing new here, we have been down this road before, both in 1998 and 2002.

Lately, I've found myself wondering, esp in the light of the S/Final target for the SE, what is wrong with us...

Is this simply arrogance or sheer stupidity?

2. Ninety-five percent or more of the teams going to the WC started building their teams four years ago. Many of them completed the squad building exercise thru the qualifiers, a regional tournament and/or the confederations cup, and regularly scheduled friendlies.

3. Those whose teams stumbled along the way, or showed persistent vulnerabilities thru these games, were able to make corrections or simply changed managers.

4. By February this year, most of these teams played their last friendlies and finalized plans for their camping and final preparatory games.

5. In spite of all this meticulous planning, many of the teams have set themselves modest targets, either in terms of points haul or 2nd round appearance.

6. But not Nigeria! We go to the WC the least prepared team, but yet have the audacity to set and actually expect a s/final finish. I mean, what am I missing here? Is it that football is that simple or that we have some secret formula?

7. We spent two locust years monkeying about with a coach we knew was not improving the team, in spite of the results. We spent two years f00ling around with a coach whose three previous stints had repeatedly delivered the same weaknesses in team organization, the same lack of in depth knowledge of tactics...

8. Then we had the ANC, which gifts African teams a chance to finalize preparations in a world cup year. We had a chance to take decisive action on the coaching personnel and begin the process of making amends. But No! We were told by the NFF that they had the coach they wanted and that he would lead the team to the WC...

9. Lo and behold, after the ignominy of losing to the Ghana U-21 team, we have made a u-turn by hiring Lagerback as the NFF officials look to save their collective arses, with Eguavoen as assistant and thus the next man to be recycled in the unending game of coaching carousel!

10. We may yet succeed in spite of ourselves in SA, and frankly I hope we do not, for the sake of our football long term..I have one regret and one joy though. I regret that we did not allow Amodu take us to the illogical conclusion of this farce. But I am joyful that we did not pass this poisoned chalice on Siasia and destroy a budding coaching career. I'll happily take a swede!

11. I look forward to the world cup. But sadly, Nigeria is only an insignificant part of it...

[wanaj0]

Nigerian fans should be termed delusional. We think we have the right to WIN even when we dont prepare. We assume we are the best even though we have average players.

Take a look at the ANC. We have 5 WC qualifiers involved. We came out 3rd BUT we termed it a failure. What should Cameroun do? What of CIV? What of Algeria? Only Ghana did better than us. Is it not delusional to declare ANC 2010 a failure looking at where our contemporaries finally ended?

Until we stop cutting corners and learn that success is something you plan for, we will continue to under achieve. Next Olympics is in two years time. Who is the coach of our Olympic team? Yet we expect to win. If we dont win, we call for the sack of the coach.

Coaching was hardly our major problem. But we were made to believe that Amodu was the problem and once he is sacked, all will be well. Same way we were told that Eguavoen was the problem.

No FC has a magic wand that will assure success. We need to persevere. Amodu had a sack threat hanging over his head from day one. After the first loss at ANC 2010 the team was destabilised by the vultures. That we even got the golden bronze was a miracle. World class Berti that was celebrated here could not even achieved that.

Sacking Amodu after meeting ALL targets set for him was a mistake.

Lets see Lagerback achieve the target set for him also. Surely he can do better with the huge dollars he is getting paid.

[Robbynice]

Sadly thats what CE has decended to...There is little or no serious football discussion going on here anymore. Its a matter of how fast Robbynice can scratch his arse and come up with a silly acronym...

Nice writeup txj ! Some of y'all are misunderstanding/mislabeling him as a WOWO/ABA/WAYC. Here he is not laying the blame at the coach but at the mishandling of our preparations by the NFF (ie friendlies etc).

That's my take too. It's clear some people have either difficulty understanding his post or hold some kind of vendetta.

Ol'boy I beg no kill me with laugh...I am sure you can do better than this in a thread that you opened and get *Nice Lady* slapped in...

[lagos777]

TXJ na clown. His main problem was that SSS wasn't hired to replace Amodu.

[Gotti]

I should say that while I have never cared for Amodu (even back in 1995 when he first got the gig), I would not have fired him after the ANC. I would have grinned and borne the humiliation we would have received this summer and looked towards Gabon and Brazil with hope as this is the cross every football fan must bear.

I would like to ask some questions though?

Do you think a team with a midfield that was molested by Benin while the coach did nothing will triumph in our groups?
Do you think a team that does not make runs off the ball, does not have any set piece routines or any idea what to do at them, that does not seem to have a clue will qualify for the 2nd round?
Do you think that performances against Zambia are acceptable?

I think that a team that went through the WCQ undefeated could qualify for the 2d round...
I think that a team that did better than all other African WC teams bar Ghana could as well...
And I KNOW that Benin and Zambia will be watching that team on television from their couches!

[Gotti]

TXJ na clown. His main problem was that SSS wasn't hired to replace Amodu.

How bad would really it be to can Lagerback and hire Siasia today?
At least, Siasia has actually met (and even coached some of) our players.

[lagos777]

TXJ na clown. His main problem was that SSS wasn't hired to replace Amodu.

How bad would really it be to can Lagerback and hire Siasia today?
At least, Siasia has actually met (and even coached some of) our players.

you just beat TXJ to his next Thread. Lol.

[Leaf]

Sadly thats what CE has decended to...There is little or no serious football discussion going on here anymore. Its a matter of how fast Robbynice can scratch his arse and come up with a silly acronym...

Nice writeup txj ! Some of y'all are misunderstanding/mislabeling him as a WOWO/ABA/WAYC. Here he is not laying the blame at the coach but at the mishandling of our preparations by the NFF (ie friendlies etc).

That's my take too. It's clear some people have either difficulty understanding his post or hold some kind of vendetta.

the acronym and labelling nonsense is flat out nauseating. its like f***ing high school.

[Enugu II]

Gotti:

Why bother....history should tell us that Africa's best performance at a WC (Cameroon 1990) came from a team that could not get out of the group phase of the ANC in the same year! Nigeria needed 3 points against Benin Rep. after the loss to Egypt --- Guess what? Nigeria achieved its goal of 3 points. That was the bottomline.

I should say that while I have never cared for Amodu (even back in 1995 when he first got the gig), I would not have fired him after the ANC. I would have grinned and borne the humiliation we would have received this summer and looked towards Gabon and Brazil with hope as this is the cross every football fan must bear.

I would like to ask some questions though?

Do you think a team with a midfield that was molested by Benin while the coach did nothing will triumph in our groups?
Do you think a team that does not make runs off the ball, does not have any set piece routines or any idea what to do at them, that does not seem to have a clue will qualify for the 2nd round?
Do you think that performances against Zambia are acceptable?

I think that a team that went through the WCQ undefeated could qualify for the 2d round...
I think that a team that did better than all other African WC teams bar Ghana could as well...
And I KNOW that Benin and Zambia will be watching that team on television from their couches!

[The YeyeMan]

Nice writeup txj ! Some of y'all are misunderstanding/mislabeling him as a WOWO/ABA/WAYC. Here he is not laying the blame at the coach but at the mishandling of our preparations by the NFF (ie friendlies etc).

That's my take too. It's clear some people have either difficulty understanding his post or hold some kind of vendetta.

Bro, the only NEW variable in the Eagles' equation is Lagerback...

Fact is that the NFF is NOT doing new things that it never did in the past. Accordingly, it is rather interesting how when an Oyinbo coach is at the helm, it somehow suddenly seems to dawn upon some folks that the blame for Nigeria's habitual poor preparations lies (properly?) with the NFF -- even after much the same folks have regaled us about how the Oyinbo coach would improve upon our preparations and take no crap from the NFF. But of course when it is an IC at the helm, much the same folks blather on about the coach's "laziness and incompetence" (a la WINNERMAN) or the coach's purported lack of "competence and professionalism" (as put by someone else whose name presently escapes me *cough*). As the wise and discerning would say "yeye dey smell"!

Entirely true. There are some who have failed to see the NFF's incompetence is a running theme no matter the nationality of the Nigeria team coach. And as you say, there is a tendency in some to point the finger at indigenous coaches for matters that clearly lie at the door of the NFF. However, txj doesn't strike me as one of those forumers.

I haven't much time for those who bury their heads in the sand [not you btw, although your positions often comes across as anti-FC and in defence of crap ICs - yes, I'm sure it's more nuanced than that...] or those like Robbynice who spends much of his time here as a supine NFF mouthpiece. Btw, congrats on writing a whole post without mentioning Bert Vogts, clean t-shirts, or massages.