Oliseh's Ridiculous Rule - Disappointed with the iffy start

[metalalloy]

Would emunike playing in uae be eligible? Or the recent goal scorer from China?

Yes to Emenike and yes to Aaaron Samuel as long as they keep up their standards in their leagues and show that they are trying to advance their careers in better league. Its a very loose standard that gives Oliseh room to maneuver.

[vancity eagle]

I think people are taking his words too literally and causing unnecessary distractions. Lets wait till he says he's left out Sone Aluko for example only bcos Hull is in the championship then we can talk. The championship is definitely better than a first division in backwater leagues and Africa. His statement was more a motivation for those that aspire to play for SE push themselves and amateurs to seek ways of testing themselves in tougher leagues.

KPOM

[2think]

IMHO, it is an ill-advised statement that is perhaps a reaction to fan displeasure with some of Keshi's invitation of "unknown" names. Oliseh should call up any player that he feels that meets what he and his coaching crew wants and not focus on what fans want. There really should be no hard and fast rule on where a player should be playing before being inviting to the SE. Such rules make very little sense particularly as it pertains to Nigeria. I make this statement because Nigerian players do not often make decisions to join a club because of the club's profile but rather decisions are based on financial reasons. You will find that Oliseh will call up a player from a division lower than the first division. Bet on it. He cannot avoid it if he wants to improve Nigerian football.

I totally agree with you on this sir, and with everything else you have written.

IMHO the important question should be; Is the player sound technically? Will he fit into whatever position or plan the coach needs him for? and ultimately, does he deliver for the team?

[Cristao II]

As one ruler in a novel I read by David Gemmell put it, the greatest danger to a civilised society is too many intelligent people - Oliseh has not even spent a month in the job and this kinda threads are being opened. I think I am beginning to prefer the days where I just wake up, tune into the Nigerian matches and GBAM!!

There are now three issues with Nigerian soccer in my books

- Administration
- Player and Coach Development
- The FANS especially those who feel they know!!

[Sir V]

In other words there is no dropology in his camp.

YeyeMan,
I disagree with such rules. I believe every coach knows that he/she should always use the best players available to fit the system. A strait jacket rule like this is just hollow IMHO. If you grant several exemptions because you suddenly find out that you cannot implement the rule in an absolute sense, then what is the value of the rule?

In this case, would Omeruo be exempt because he goes back to Middlesborough? Will you decide not to call Ighalo any more if he goes into relegation with Watford? This simply is a slippery slope that Oliseh or any other person does not need for that matter.

Simple -- international football is for those the NT coach deems good enough to play for the country. No need for defining whether the guy plays in Division I or not.

If I was Oliseh, the next time some journalist wants to talk about this my answer will be: "We will invite and use players that we consider to be the best for Nigeria"

Journalist: "But these are players playing for top division clubs, are they not?"

Oliseh: "Not necessarily, while many may play in Division I, it will not dissuade us from using any other player that we find useful for Nigeria"

It just does not make sense to box yourself into a corner.

I first called for this exact minimum standard requirement to be introduced a long time ago. So I don't see it as a reaction to Keshi's penchant for puzzling call ups to the senior team.

There really should be no hard and fast rule on where a player should be playing before being inviting to the SE.

Just to be clear, in case there's uncertainty, it's not about "where" the player plys his trade - i.e. Nigeria, Spain, England, China, etc... It's about playing in the top-flight league of those countries.

I don't have many qualms with this rule, as there'll likely be exceptions, but what the rule infers is that if a player in a lower league has ambitions to play for the national team then he will need to improve his game further and/or find himself playing at a higher level in order to fulfill that ambition. It's an incentive to play at the higher level.

International football isn't for everybody. I think this is a sound baseline standard - especially for new players.

[Enugu II]

In other words there is no dropology in his camp.

YeyeMan,
I disagree with such rules. I believe every coach knows that he/she should always use the best players available to fit the system. A strait jacket rule like this is just hollow IMHO. If you grant several exemptions because you suddenly find out that you cannot implement the rule in an absolute sense, then what is the value of the rule?

In this case, would Omeruo be exempt because he goes back to Middlesborough? Will you decide not to call Ighalo any more if he goes into relegation with Watford? This simply is a slippery slope that Oliseh or any other person does not need for that matter.

Simple -- international football is for those the NT coach deems good enough to play for the country. No need for defining whether the guy plays in Division I or not.

If I was Oliseh, the next time some journalist wants to talk about this my answer will be: "We will invite and use players that we consider to be the best for Nigeria"

Journalist: "But these are players playing for top division clubs, are they not?"

Oliseh: "Not necessarily, while many may play in Division I, it will not dissuade us from using any other player that we find useful for Nigeria"

It just does not make sense to box yourself into a corner.

I first called for this exact minimum standard requirement to be introduced a long time ago. So I don't see it as a reaction to Keshi's penchant for puzzling call ups to the senior team.

There really should be no hard and fast rule on where a player should be playing before being inviting to the SE.

Just to be clear, in case there's uncertainty, it's not about "where" the player plys his trade - i.e. Nigeria, Spain, England, China, etc... It's about playing in the top-flight league of those countries.

I don't have many qualms with this rule, as there'll likely be exceptions, but what the rule infers is that if a player in a lower league has ambitions to play for the national team then he will need to improve his game further and/or find himself playing at a higher level in order to fulfill that ambition. It's an incentive to play at the higher level.

International football isn't for everybody. I think this is a sound baseline standard - especially for new players.

My brother, I know think Oliseh believe your theory of dropology o! L'boy but I sari say dem go begin mention Churchill Oliseh and Ebidei wen Oliseh no come win game o!

[The YeyeMan]

Bringing this one back in light of lower division players getting called up.

[The YeyeMan]

I first called for this exact minimum standard requirement to be introduced a long time ago. So I don't see it as a reaction to Keshi's penchant for puzzling call ups to the senior team.

There really should be no hard and fast rule on where a player should be playing before being inviting to the SE.

Just to be clear, in case there's uncertainty, it's not about "where" the player plys his trade - i.e. Nigeria, Spain, England, China, etc... It's about playing in the top-flight league of those countries.

I don't have many qualms with this rule, as there'll likely be exceptions, but what the rule infers is that if a player in a lower league has ambitions to play for the national team then he will need to improve his game further and/or find himself playing at a higher level in order to fulfill that ambition. It's an incentive to play at the higher level.

International football isn't for everybody. I think this is a sound baseline standard - especially for new players.

I have been talking sense for years.

[BigMuze]

I first called for this exact minimum standard requirement to be introduced a long time ago. So I don't see it as a reaction to Keshi's penchant for puzzling call ups to the senior team.

There really should be no hard and fast rule on where a player should be playing before being inviting to the SE.

Just to be clear, in case there's uncertainty, it's not about "where" the player plys his trade - i.e. Nigeria, Spain, England, China, etc... It's about playing in the top-flight league of those countries.

I don't have many qualms with this rule, as there'll likely be exceptions, but what the rule infers is that if a player in a lower league has ambitions to play for the national team then he will need to improve his game further and/or find himself playing at a higher level in order to fulfill that ambition. It's an incentive to play at the higher level.

International football isn't for everybody. I think this is a sound baseline standard - especially for new players.

I have been talking sense for years.

AFCON 2023 'broadly' confirms this, but moreso in 2024 than it was in 2015. There have been huge changes in football since then. Morocco qualified for WC Semis. Things have changed. In AFCON, for now, only the likes of Senegal seem to be blazing through with players largely from first division clubs. Then again there are still traces of Saudi (3 first 11 players), Israel and French dv 2 in the team. The team and tactics are more important than individual talents.

[danfo driver]

I first called for this exact minimum standard requirement to be introduced a long time ago. So I don't see it as a reaction to Keshi's penchant for puzzling call ups to the senior team.

There really should be no hard and fast rule on where a player should be playing before being inviting to the SE.

Just to be clear, in case there's uncertainty, it's not about "where" the player plys his trade - i.e. Nigeria, Spain, England, China, etc... It's about playing in the top-flight league of those countries.

I don't have many qualms with this rule, as there'll likely be exceptions, but what the rule infers is that if a player in a lower league has ambitions to play for the national team then he will need to improve his game further and/or find himself playing at a higher level in order to fulfill that ambition. It's an incentive to play at the higher level.

International football isn't for everybody. I think this is a sound baseline standard - especially for new players.

I have been talking sense for years.

Nigerians are not ready for this because they are PETRIFIED that the loop holes for corruption will be sealed. Its literally like almost everything in Nigeria. If Nigeria works, then the loopholes for corruption will be sealed and people will lose their means of survival.

- If you pay for your passport online, it means that the crook at the embassy will lose his opportunity to get kickbacks
- if you repair the road properly, it means that the crook in the ministry of works will not be able to award fake contracts
- if you have internal audits, it means that the crook at the procurement department will not be able to get kickbacks

IF YOU HAVE STANDARDS for call-ups (Div 1), then it means that the crook in the NFF and the coaching crew, will not be able to blackmail a lower level sh1t player in order to share his match bonuses.

The thing Nigerians love more than personally benefiting from corruption, is watching a "big man" benefit from corruption. It is why you see wretched Nigerians who have not eaten in 2 days show their yellow teeth, smiling and hailing a rich corrupt politician who is driving passed them. TUEH!!

[scholl]

I first called for this exact minimum standard requirement to be introduced a long time ago. So I don't see it as a reaction to Keshi's penchant for puzzling call ups to the senior team.

There really should be no hard and fast rule on where a player should be playing before being inviting to the SE.

Just to be clear, in case there's uncertainty, it's not about "where" the player plys his trade - i.e. Nigeria, Spain, England, China, etc... It's about playing in the top-flight league of those countries.

I don't have many qualms with this rule, as there'll likely be exceptions, but what the rule infers is that if a player in a lower league has ambitions to play for the national team then he will need to improve his game further and/or find himself playing at a higher level in order to fulfill that ambition. It's an incentive to play at the higher level.

International football isn't for everybody. I think this is a sound baseline standard - especially for new players.

I have been talking sense for years.

Nigerians are not ready for this because they are PETRIFIED that the loop holes for corruption will be sealed. Its literally like almost everything in Nigeria. If Nigeria works, then the loopholes for corruption will be sealed and people will lose their means of survival.

- If you pay for your passport online, it means that the crook at the embassy will lose his opportunity to get kickbacks
- if you repair the road properly, it means that the crook in the ministry of works will not be able to award fake contracts
- if you have internal audits, it means that the crook at the procurement department will not be able to get kickbacks

IF YOU HAVE STANDARDS for call-ups (Div 1), then it means that the crook in the NFF and the coaching crew, will not be able to blackmail a lower level sh1t player in order to share his match bonuses.

The thing Nigerians love more than personally benefiting from corruption, is watching a "big man" benefit from corruption. It is why you see wretched Nigerians who have not eaten in 2 days show their yellow teeth, smiling and hailing a rich corrupt politician who is driving passed them. TUEH!!

I am enjoying your posts. You surely mirror a lot of my sentiments. Nigeria is a morally decayed society, and I find it hard to think that majority of those born in a worsening system, should somehow turn out better than their predecessors, who grew up in a "less worse" system.

[Enugu II]

To impose a hard and fast rule about selecting Nigerian players ignores one reality about the trajectory of Nigeria's migratory trend. Migration of Nigerian players to clubs do not mirror that of German or English players. It is by far different. That reality must first be acknowledged.

Nigeria, as well as African players, are not seeking out the best clubs. Instead, they first and foremost are seeking escape from poverty and deprivation that they experience at home. This means that some of them will take the first opportunity to migrate outside the country to wherever they are assured a consistent payment. That location might be elsewhere in Africa, Asia, Europe or wherever. This decision does not mean that they are less talented. They make the decision simply because they want to get paid. Football for them is first about a JOB.

Now, the question is do you ignore these players because they have chosen to go to Asia, Middle East, or some Scandinavian nation? I think not. If you notice at this AFCON, there are things that are coming to the fore:

Foremost is that it does not matter where your players are playing. Where exactly are the table topping players from Equatorial Guinea, Angola, and Cape Verde playing? Are they playing at the top levels in European football? We saw the humiliation of Ivory Coast by Equatorial Guinea, compare where players on both teams ply their trade. The answer is that where these players ply their trade, matter diddly. There is no result at this tournament, thus far, that supports playing at top level in Europe being the Nirvana. Look at Nigeria deeply, we have had a player who plays in Bundesliga not able to outplace those playing in the so-called lower leagues.

There is one truism to learn from all these -- the focus should be on the individual player. Not the team and not the league. After all, you are not inviting the team or the league to the national camp. It is the individual player that is invited. Let him prove himself against all others while in camp. No player should get on the field riding on the coat tails of his league or club but riding on his individual productivity. That should be the goal.

[waka-man]

I first called for this exact minimum standard requirement to be introduced a long time ago. So I don't see it as a reaction to Keshi's penchant for puzzling call ups to the senior team.

There really should be no hard and fast rule on where a player should be playing before being inviting to the SE.

Just to be clear, in case there's uncertainty, it's not about "where" the player plys his trade - i.e. Nigeria, Spain, England, China, etc... It's about playing in the top-flight league of those countries.

I don't have many qualms with this rule, as there'll likely be exceptions, but what the rule infers is that if a player in a lower league has ambitions to play for the national team then he will need to improve his game further and/or find himself playing at a higher level in order to fulfill that ambition. It's an incentive to play at the higher level.

International football isn't for everybody. I think this is a sound baseline standard - especially for new players.

I have been talking sense for years.

Nigerians are not ready for this because they are PETRIFIED that the loop holes for corruption will be sealed. Its literally like almost everything in Nigeria. If Nigeria works, then the loopholes for corruption will be sealed and people will lose their means of survival.

- If you pay for your passport online, it means that the crook at the embassy will lose his opportunity to get kickbacks
- if you repair the road properly, it means that the crook in the ministry of works will not be able to award fake contracts
- if you have internal audits, it means that the crook at the procurement department will not be able to get kickbacks

IF YOU HAVE STANDARDS for call-ups (Div 1), then it means that the crook in the NFF and the coaching crew, will not be able to blackmail a lower level sh1t player in order to share his match bonuses.

The thing Nigerians love more than personally benefiting from corruption, is watching a "big man" benefit from corruption. It is why you see wretched Nigerians who have not eaten in 2 days show their yellow teeth, smiling and hailing a rich corrupt politician who is driving passed them. TUEH!!

I am enjoying your posts. You surely mirror a lot of my sentiments. Nigeria is a morally decayed society, and I find it hard to think that majority of those born in a worsening system, should somehow turn out better than their predecessors, who grew up in a "less worse" system.

Goodness me you all have Trump-like ideas about us Nigerians.
Lots of goodness and achievement from Nigerians both inside and outside the country. You just need to vary the places you go to and have good intentions yourself.

[greg]

To impose a hard and fast rule about selecting Nigerian players ignores one reality about the trajectory of Nigeria's migratory trend. Migration of Nigerian players to clubs do not mirror that of German or English players. It is by far different. That reality must first be acknowledged.

Nigeria, as well as African players, are not seeking out the best clubs. Instead, they first and foremost are seeking escape from poverty and deprivation that they experience at home. This means that some of them will take the first opportunity to migrate outside the country to wherever they are assured a consistent payment. That location might be elsewhere in Africa, Asia, Europe or wherever. This decision does not mean that they are less talented. They make the decision simply because they want to get paid. Football for them is first about a JOB.

Now, the question is do you ignore these players because they have chosen to go to Asia, Middle East, or some Scandinavian nation? I think not. If you notice at this AFCON, there are things that are coming to the fore:

Foremost is that it does not matter where your players are playing. Where exactly are the table topping players from Equatorial Guinea, Angola, and Cape Verde playing? Are they playing at the top levels in European football? We saw the humiliation of Ivory Coast by Equatorial Guinea, compare where players on both teams ply their trade. The answer is that where these players ply their trade, matter diddly. There is no result at this tournament, thus far, that supports playing at top level in Europe being the Nirvana. Look at Nigeria deeply, we have had a player who plays in Bundesliga not able to outplace those playing in the so-called lower leagues.

There is one truism to learn from all these -- the focus should be on the individual player. Not the team and not the league. After all, you are not inviting the team or the league to the national camp. It is the individual player that is invited. Let him prove himself against all others while in camp. No player should get on the field riding on the coat tails of his league or club but riding on his individual productivity. That should be the goal.

Chei you spent all this energy trying to convince people who have their minds made up already? Like Waka Man said above, "Trump-Like" is a good description. The answer they gave to all the points you raised is that "CIV actually looked better than Eq Guinea.." etc. In short, moral victories is what they want us to celebrate. In a sport where results are everything.

[Cellular]

To impose a hard and fast rule about selecting Nigerian players ignores one reality about the trajectory of Nigeria's migratory trend. Migration of Nigerian players to clubs do not mirror that of German or English players. It is by far different. That reality must first be acknowledged.

Nigeria, as well as African players, are not seeking out the best clubs. Instead, they first and foremost are seeking escape from poverty and deprivation that they experience at home. This means that some of them will take the first opportunity to migrate outside the country to wherever they are assured a consistent payment. That location might be elsewhere in Africa, Asia, Europe or wherever. This decision does not mean that they are less talented. They make the decision simply because they want to get paid. Football for them is first about a JOB.

Now, the question is do you ignore these players because they have chosen to go to Asia, Middle East, or some Scandinavian nation? I think not. If you notice at this AFCON, there are things that are coming to the fore:

Foremost is that it does not matter where your players are playing. Where exactly are the table topping players from Equatorial Guinea, Angola, and Cape Verde playing? Are they playing at the top levels in European football? We saw the humiliation of Ivory Coast by Equatorial Guinea, compare where players on both teams ply their trade. The answer is that where these players ply their trade, matter diddly. There is no result at this tournament, thus far, that supports playing at top level in Europe being the Nirvana. Look at Nigeria deeply, we have had a player who plays in Bundesliga not able to outplace those playing in the so-called lower leagues.

There is one truism to learn from all these -- the focus should be on the individual player. Not the team and not the league. After all, you are not inviting the team or the league to the national camp. It is the individual player that is invited. Let him prove himself against all others while in camp. No player should get on the field riding on the coat tails of his league or club but riding on his individual productivity. That should be the goal.

Prof., you can't have it both ways. Oliseh actually looked at players playing in the Naijarian domestic league. My take is simple. If you have designs for playing for the Naijarian Men's National team, you either be homebased or be playing in a premier division of a top league. I don't want anyone who "ESCAPED POVERTY" and made a decision to be earning a living in backwater leagues to be considered for the Naijarian Men's National team.

You talk about where Equatorial Guinea, Angola, Lesotho, Mozambique and Cape Verde playing? Are we now comparing ourselves to them? We pride ourselves as measuring ourselves with World's best.

The reason why these other countries are catching up to us is because we have NO standards. None.

Demand more from your players who in turn will make your national team better.

If you make a business decision and follow the money, then you shouldn't be surprised if you are not invited to the National team. Should there be exceptions to the rule? Maybe. But I find it difficult to believe we have a player that warrants such an exemption.

[Enugu II]

To impose a hard and fast rule about selecting Nigerian players ignores one reality about the trajectory of Nigeria's migratory trend. Migration of Nigerian players to clubs do not mirror that of German or English players. It is by far different. That reality must first be acknowledged.

Nigeria, as well as African players, are not seeking out the best clubs. Instead, they first and foremost are seeking escape from poverty and deprivation that they experience at home. This means that some of them will take the first opportunity to migrate outside the country to wherever they are assured a consistent payment. That location might be elsewhere in Africa, Asia, Europe or wherever. This decision does not mean that they are less talented. They make the decision simply because they want to get paid. Football for them is first about a JOB.

Now, the question is do you ignore these players because they have chosen to go to Asia, Middle East, or some Scandinavian nation? I think not. If you notice at this AFCON, there are things that are coming to the fore:

Foremost is that it does not matter where your players are playing. Where exactly are the table topping players from Equatorial Guinea, Angola, and Cape Verde playing? Are they playing at the top levels in European football? We saw the humiliation of Ivory Coast by Equatorial Guinea, compare where players on both teams ply their trade. The answer is that where these players ply their trade, matter diddly. There is no result at this tournament, thus far, that supports playing at top level in Europe being the Nirvana. Look at Nigeria deeply, we have had a player who plays in Bundesliga not able to outplace those playing in the so-called lower leagues.

There is one truism to learn from all these -- the focus should be on the individual player. Not the team and not the league. After all, you are not inviting the team or the league to the national camp. It is the individual player that is invited. Let him prove himself against all others while in camp. No player should get on the field riding on the coat tails of his league or club but riding on his individual productivity. That should be the goal.

Prof., you can't have it both ways. Oliseh actually looked at players playing in the Naijarian domestic league. My take is simple. If you have designs for playing for the Naijarian Men's National team, you either be homebased or be playing in a premier division of a top league. I don't want anyone who "ESCAPED POVERTY" and made a decision to be earning a living in backwater leagues to be considered for the Naijarian Men's National team.

You talk about where Equatorial Guinea, Angola, Lesotho, Mozambique and Cape Verde playing? Are we now comparing ourselves to them? We pride ourselves as measuring ourselves with World's best.

The reason why these other countries are catching up to us is because we have NO standards. None.

Demand more from your players who in turn will make your national team better.

If you make a business decision and follow the money, then you shouldn't be surprised if you are not invited to the National team. Should there be exceptions to the rule? Maybe. But I find it difficult to believe we have a player that warrants such an exemption.

Cell,

But escaping poverty should not bar someone from an invitation. The person is still Nigerian and should be eligible, should he not. What the focus is or should be is the talent of the player disregarding his living disregarding his club, and disregarding the league. It should be about the PERSON and his abilities.

Oliseh did invite some locals only after he was pressured and watched some of the league. But if you recall, even Oliseh initially wanted nothing to do with the local league and with lower division players but he quickly learned that it just does not work. That is well documented.

Well, we cannot run away from the likes of Equatorial Guinea and others. Why? First, we are huffing and puffing to overcome them even after we restricted our attention to inviting only players playing in the top divisions of leagues in Europe. That points, actually, to the fallacy of our current focus.

[danfo driver]

I first called for this exact minimum standard requirement to be introduced a long time ago. So I don't see it as a reaction to Keshi's penchant for puzzling call ups to the senior team.

There really should be no hard and fast rule on where a player should be playing before being inviting to the SE.

Just to be clear, in case there's uncertainty, it's not about "where" the player plys his trade - i.e. Nigeria, Spain, England, China, etc... It's about playing in the top-flight league of those countries.

I don't have many qualms with this rule, as there'll likely be exceptions, but what the rule infers is that if a player in a lower league has ambitions to play for the national team then he will need to improve his game further and/or find himself playing at a higher level in order to fulfill that ambition. It's an incentive to play at the higher level.

International football isn't for everybody. I think this is a sound baseline standard - especially for new players.

I have been talking sense for years.

Nigerians are not ready for this because they are PETRIFIED that the loop holes for corruption will be sealed. Its literally like almost everything in Nigeria. If Nigeria works, then the loopholes for corruption will be sealed and people will lose their means of survival.

- If you pay for your passport online, it means that the crook at the embassy will lose his opportunity to get kickbacks
- if you repair the road properly, it means that the crook in the ministry of works will not be able to award fake contracts
- if you have internal audits, it means that the crook at the procurement department will not be able to get kickbacks

IF YOU HAVE STANDARDS for call-ups (Div 1), then it means that the crook in the NFF and the coaching crew, will not be able to blackmail a lower level sh1t player in order to share his match bonuses.

The thing Nigerians love more than personally benefiting from corruption, is watching a "big man" benefit from corruption. It is why you see wretched Nigerians who have not eaten in 2 days show their yellow teeth, smiling and hailing a rich corrupt politician who is driving passed them. TUEH!!

I am enjoying your posts. You surely mirror a lot of my sentiments. Nigeria is a morally decayed society, and I find it hard to think that majority of those born in a worsening system, should somehow turn out better than their predecessors, who grew up in a "less worse" system.

Goodness me you all have Trump-like ideas about us Nigerians.
Lots of goodness and achievement from Nigerians both inside and outside the country. You just need to vary the places you go to and have good intentions yourself.

You always seem unable to focus on the issues at hand. I have noticed that. When an issue is being discussed, you start talking about something else, which is absolutely irrelevant to the conversation at hand. Its not a good trait to have and it means, you will struggle to learn and improve.

Its like when we were discussing the failure of our medical team to properly assess a players injury. And how do we restructure our medical team, so that we are able to avoid severe consequences in the present (Iheanacho) and in the future. You were more interested in discussing "Stagger lee" and "dunking basketball player" One wonders how you were able to keep up, while in school. Must have been difficult.

[danfo driver]

To impose a hard and fast rule about selecting Nigerian players ignores one reality about the trajectory of Nigeria's migratory trend. Migration of Nigerian players to clubs do not mirror that of German or English players. It is by far different. That reality must first be acknowledged.

Nigeria, as well as African players, are not seeking out the best clubs. Instead, they first and foremost are seeking escape from poverty and deprivation that they experience at home. This means that some of them will take the first opportunity to migrate outside the country to wherever they are assured a consistent payment. That location might be elsewhere in Africa, Asia, Europe or wherever. This decision does not mean that they are less talented. They make the decision simply because they want to get paid. Football for them is first about a JOB.

Now, the question is do you ignore these players because they have chosen to go to Asia, Middle East, or some Scandinavian nation? I think not. If you notice at this AFCON, there are things that are coming to the fore:

Foremost is that it does not matter where your players are playing. Where exactly are the table topping players from Equatorial Guinea, Angola, and Cape Verde playing? Are they playing at the top levels in European football? We saw the humiliation of Ivory Coast by Equatorial Guinea, compare where players on both teams ply their trade. The answer is that where these players ply their trade, matter diddly. There is no result at this tournament, thus far, that supports playing at top level in Europe being the Nirvana. Look at Nigeria deeply, we have had a player who plays in Bundesliga not able to outplace those playing in the so-called lower leagues.

There is one truism to learn from all these -- the focus should be on the individual player. Not the team and not the league. After all, you are not inviting the team or the league to the national camp. It is the individual player that is invited. Let him prove himself against all others while in camp. No player should get on the field riding on the coat tails of his league or club but riding on his individual productivity. That should be the goal.

Prof., you can't have it both ways. Oliseh actually looked at players playing in the Naijarian domestic league. My take is simple. If you have designs for playing for the Naijarian Men's National team, you either be homebased or be playing in a premier division of a top league. I don't want anyone who "ESCAPED POVERTY" and made a decision to be earning a living in backwater leagues to be considered for the Naijarian Men's National team.

You talk about where Equatorial Guinea, Angola, Lesotho, Mozambique and Cape Verde playing? Are we now comparing ourselves to them? We pride ourselves as measuring ourselves with World's best.

The reason why these other countries are catching up to us is because we have NO standards. None.

Demand more from your players who in turn will make your national team better.

If you make a business decision and follow the money, then you shouldn't be surprised if you are not invited to the National team. Should there be exceptions to the rule? Maybe. But I find it difficult to believe we have a player that warrants such an exemption.

Funny enough, we are sooooooo similar to Brazil.

Brazilians leave their leagues to rush to backwater leagues all the time to avoid poverty. Go to any league and you'll see Brazilians there! India o! Serbia o! Switzerland o! Russia o! Even Ukraine before had a lot of Brazilians! etc etc

But Brazil refused to call them! The Brazilians focused on top Div players OR Brazilian league! Simple as that! Oscar left Chelsea to China to become a billionaire, and Brazil bid him "goodbye!" and "best wishes!"

And please dont tell me "Nigeria is Not Brazil." Niger is Not EQG, Angola an Lesotho either.

[danfo driver]

Cell,

But escaping poverty should not bar someone from an invitation. The person is still Nigerian and should be eligible, should he not. What the focus is or should be is the talent of the player disregarding his living disregarding his club, and disregarding the league. It should be about the PERSON and his abilities.

Uncle, thats actually NOT how teams are selected. You dont select teams solely based on talent. You look at the level the person is playing and whether such a person, if they are drafted in, will reduce the quality of the overall team's performance. There are many talented players playing U13, we sure wont invite them to the SE because they will reduce the quality of our overall team's performance.

Well, we cannot run away from the likes of Equatorial Guinea and others. Why? First, we are huffing and puffing to overcome them even after we restricted our attention to inviting only players playing in the top divisions of leagues in Europe. That points, actually, to the fallacy of our current focus.

No one was Huffing and puffing against EQG. We all watched the match that day. We had a Div 2 benchwarmer partner a Greek-based player at CB, and yet we dominated them and should have beaten them 4-1 or 3-1. Tells you all you need to know.

[The YeyeMan]

To impose a hard and fast rule about selecting Nigerian players ignores one reality about the trajectory of Nigeria's migratory trend. Migration of Nigerian players to clubs do not mirror that of German or English players. It is by far different. That reality must first be acknowledged.

Nigeria, as well as African players, are not seeking out the best clubs. Instead, they first and foremost are seeking escape from poverty and deprivation that they experience at home. This means that some of them will take the first opportunity to migrate outside the country to wherever they are assured a consistent payment. That location might be elsewhere in Africa, Asia, Europe or wherever. This decision does not mean that they are less talented. They make the decision simply because they want to get paid. Football for them is first about a JOB.

Now, the question is do you ignore these players because they have chosen to go to Asia, Middle East, or some Scandinavian nation? I think not. If you notice at this AFCON, there are things that are coming to the fore:

Foremost is that it does not matter where your players are playing. Where exactly are the table topping players from Equatorial Guinea, Angola, and Cape Verde playing? Are they playing at the top levels in European football? We saw the humiliation of Ivory Coast by Equatorial Guinea, compare where players on both teams ply their trade. The answer is that where these players ply their trade, matter diddly. There is no result at this tournament, thus far, that supports playing at top level in Europe being the Nirvana. Look at Nigeria deeply, we have had a player who plays in Bundesliga not able to outplace those playing in the so-called lower leagues.

There is one truism to learn from all these -- the focus should be on the individual player. Not the team and not the league. After all, you are not inviting the team or the league to the national camp. It is the individual player that is invited. Let him prove himself against all others while in camp. No player should get on the field riding on the coat tails of his league or club but riding on his individual productivity. That should be the goal.

Firstly, the baseline standard Oliseh wanted to impose was that you have to play in the top division of any country you played in. You could play in China but it'd have to be in Division 1 and not Division 2-4 or whatever.

Secondly, the focus should be on both a) the individual and b) the quality of the league he plays in. Where these players ply their trade is undoubtedly important. Especially for a team that has a habit of selecting players from obscure backwater leagues - and continues this practice to this very day (e.g. Musa). It's about having a bare minimum standard for team selection.

[waka-man]

I first called for this exact minimum standard requirement to be introduced a long time ago. So I don't see it as a reaction to Keshi's penchant for puzzling call ups to the senior team.

There really should be no hard and fast rule on where a player should be playing before being inviting to the SE.

Just to be clear, in case there's uncertainty, it's not about "where" the player plys his trade - i.e. Nigeria, Spain, England, China, etc... It's about playing in the top-flight league of those countries.

I don't have many qualms with this rule, as there'll likely be exceptions, but what the rule infers is that if a player in a lower league has ambitions to play for the national team then he will need to improve his game further and/or find himself playing at a higher level in order to fulfill that ambition. It's an incentive to play at the higher level.

International football isn't for everybody. I think this is a sound baseline standard - especially for new players.

I have been talking sense for years.

Nigerians are not ready for this because they are PETRIFIED that the loop holes for corruption will be sealed. Its literally like almost everything in Nigeria. If Nigeria works, then the loopholes for corruption will be sealed and people will lose their means of survival.

- If you pay for your passport online, it means that the crook at the embassy will lose his opportunity to get kickbacks
- if you repair the road properly, it means that the crook in the ministry of works will not be able to award fake contracts
- if you have internal audits, it means that the crook at the procurement department will not be able to get kickbacks

IF YOU HAVE STANDARDS for call-ups (Div 1), then it means that the crook in the NFF and the coaching crew, will not be able to blackmail a lower level sh1t player in order to share his match bonuses.

The thing Nigerians love more than personally benefiting from corruption, is watching a "big man" benefit from corruption. It is why you see wretched Nigerians who have not eaten in 2 days show their yellow teeth, smiling and hailing a rich corrupt politician who is driving passed them. TUEH!!

I am enjoying your posts. You surely mirror a lot of my sentiments. Nigeria is a morally decayed society, and I find it hard to think that majority of those born in a worsening system, should somehow turn out better than their predecessors, who grew up in a "less worse" system.

Goodness me you all have Trump-like ideas about us Nigerians.
Lots of goodness and achievement from Nigerians both inside and outside the country. You just need to vary the places you go to and have good intentions yourself.

You always seem unable to focus on the issues at hand. I have noticed that. When an issue is being discussed, you start talking about something else, which is absolutely irrelevant to the conversation at hand. Its not a good trait to have and it means, you will struggle to learn and improve.

Its like when we were discussing the failure of our medical team to properly assess a players injury. And how do we restructure our medical team, so that we are able to avoid severe consequences in the present (Iheanacho) and in the future. You were more interested in discussing "Stagger lee" and "dunking basketball player" One wonders how you were able to keep up, while in school. Must have been difficult.

Wow. You could write a book on me with this personal obsession. You remember my posts more than me!
As for focus, that’s hilariously, coming from you with your obvious ADHD

[scholl]

I first called for this exact minimum standard requirement to be introduced a long time ago. So I don't see it as a reaction to Keshi's penchant for puzzling call ups to the senior team.

There really should be no hard and fast rule on where a player should be playing before being inviting to the SE.

Just to be clear, in case there's uncertainty, it's not about "where" the player plys his trade - i.e. Nigeria, Spain, England, China, etc... It's about playing in the top-flight league of those countries.

I don't have many qualms with this rule, as there'll likely be exceptions, but what the rule infers is that if a player in a lower league has ambitions to play for the national team then he will need to improve his game further and/or find himself playing at a higher level in order to fulfill that ambition. It's an incentive to play at the higher level.

International football isn't for everybody. I think this is a sound baseline standard - especially for new players.

I have been talking sense for years.

Nigerians are not ready for this because they are PETRIFIED that the loop holes for corruption will be sealed. Its literally like almost everything in Nigeria. If Nigeria works, then the loopholes for corruption will be sealed and people will lose their means of survival.

- If you pay for your passport online, it means that the crook at the embassy will lose his opportunity to get kickbacks
- if you repair the road properly, it means that the crook in the ministry of works will not be able to award fake contracts
- if you have internal audits, it means that the crook at the procurement department will not be able to get kickbacks

IF YOU HAVE STANDARDS for call-ups (Div 1), then it means that the crook in the NFF and the coaching crew, will not be able to blackmail a lower level sh1t player in order to share his match bonuses.

The thing Nigerians love more than personally benefiting from corruption, is watching a "big man" benefit from corruption. It is why you see wretched Nigerians who have not eaten in 2 days show their yellow teeth, smiling and hailing a rich corrupt politician who is driving passed them. TUEH!!

I am enjoying your posts. You surely mirror a lot of my sentiments. Nigeria is a morally decayed society, and I find it hard to think that majority of those born in a worsening system, should somehow turn out better than their predecessors, who grew up in a "less worse" system.

Goodness me you all have Trump-like ideas about us Nigerians.
Lots of goodness and achievement from Nigerians both inside and outside the country. You just need to vary the places you go to and have good intentions yourself.

What’s “Trump-like” about what I wrote? Why don’t you substantiate how these goodness and achievements have been catalysts of progress in Nigeria.

There’s no variation in what Nigeria represents, it’s a failure of a country.

[waka-man]

I first called for this exact minimum standard requirement to be introduced a long time ago. So I don't see it as a reaction to Keshi's penchant for puzzling call ups to the senior team.

There really should be no hard and fast rule on where a player should be playing before being inviting to the SE.

Just to be clear, in case there's uncertainty, it's not about "where" the player plys his trade - i.e. Nigeria, Spain, England, China, etc... It's about playing in the top-flight league of those countries.

I don't have many qualms with this rule, as there'll likely be exceptions, but what the rule infers is that if a player in a lower league has ambitions to play for the national team then he will need to improve his game further and/or find himself playing at a higher level in order to fulfill that ambition. It's an incentive to play at the higher level.

International football isn't for everybody. I think this is a sound baseline standard - especially for new players.

I have been talking sense for years.

Nigerians are not ready for this because they are PETRIFIED that the loop holes for corruption will be sealed. Its literally like almost everything in Nigeria. If Nigeria works, then the loopholes for corruption will be sealed and people will lose their means of survival.

- If you pay for your passport online, it means that the crook at the embassy will lose his opportunity to get kickbacks
- if you repair the road properly, it means that the crook in the ministry of works will not be able to award fake contracts
- if you have internal audits, it means that the crook at the procurement department will not be able to get kickbacks

IF YOU HAVE STANDARDS for call-ups (Div 1), then it means that the crook in the NFF and the coaching crew, will not be able to blackmail a lower level sh1t player in order to share his match bonuses.

The thing Nigerians love more than personally benefiting from corruption, is watching a "big man" benefit from corruption. It is why you see wretched Nigerians who have not eaten in 2 days show their yellow teeth, smiling and hailing a rich corrupt politician who is driving passed them. TUEH!!

I am enjoying your posts. You surely mirror a lot of my sentiments. Nigeria is a morally decayed society, and I find it hard to think that majority of those born in a worsening system, should somehow turn out better than their predecessors, who grew up in a "less worse" system.

Goodness me you all have Trump-like ideas about us Nigerians.
Lots of goodness and achievement from Nigerians both inside and outside the country. You just need to vary the places you go to and have good intentions yourself.

What’s “Trump-like” about what I wrote? Why don’t you substantiate how these goodness and achievements have been catalysts of progress in Nigeria.

There’s no variation in what Nigeria represents, it’s a failure of a country.

EVERYTHING you wrote is Trump like.

Like Trump, it is the lazy and simplistic stereotyping.
I am Nigerian. You tar us all with the same brush and I take offence to being described in the way you have.

There is A LOT of variation to what Nigeria represents. A thriving global music industry, an emerging fashion scene making waves around the world, amazing athletes and sports people, home and diaspora-bred academics leading in their fields.

I was in Nigeria four times last year and each time I witnessed the depressing despair and hopeless that arises from uncaring leaders. We have huge problems. But I always witnessed beautiful humanity that I’ve rarely seen around the world: a taxi driver spending half the morning trying to find me because I left a phone in his car - and he refused any reward say “Oga it’s my job”. A painter who worked 18-hours days to complete my house for no extra charge because he knew my elderly mom was due back home in a week. An elementary 6 girl in my village who’s parents have no formal education yet she’s taught herself how to code on her uncle’s cheap laptop; a local nurse who uses her own money to pay for drugs for poor women… the list goes on. And I could go on.

But I have no interest in doing this work for you because you clearly have no interest in doing it for yourself. So stick with your single narrative. But don’t expect us to accept the insults.