The former international has admonished the
senior national team players to go all out for a
win on Sunday
Former Super Eagles' defender, Chidi Nwanu
has faulted the decision of the Nigeria Football
Federation (NFF) to airlift the country's senior
national team to Ethiopia 24 hours ahead of
the first leg of the 2014 FIFA World Cup play-
off against the Walya Antelopes scheduled for
Sunday at 2pm (Nigeria Time).
The Eagles will battle the high altitude and a
bumpy pitch in Addis Ababa and to reduce the
effect on the team, the NFF stated that the
players would hit the East African nation on
Saturday a day before the all-important
qualifier billed for Sunday.
The Football House had arranged for the Eagles
to train at Abuja for about four days before
the team would storm Ethiopia for the game.
In a chat with Goal from Belgium, Nwanu
expressed his reservations about the travel
plans of the NFF for the Eagles and said that
the team might struggle to cope with the
weather condition in Addis Ababa.
He stressed that the best option would have
been for the NFF to arrange for the players to
get to the match venue at least a few days
before the clash so as to properly acclimatise.
"I still don't understand the reason why the
team will be leaving for Ethiopia 24 hours to a
crucial match such as this World Cup qualifier.
“The best option for the Eagles would have
been to arrive Addis Ababa few days to the
game so as to get used to the weather and
other unpalatable conditions.
"It is not a good decision by the NFF to have
the players in Ethiopia on Saturday when the
game is fixed for Sunday.
“When will they have a feel of the turf and
what impact will the weather have on them,”
the defender who graced the 1994 World Cup
asked.
“Shabby programme and lack of adequate
preparation will be of no good to Nigeria. We
need to do more to get the desired result.
When there is no labour, there is no sweet,” he
added.
The former Beveren and Anderlecht's defender
however affirmed that the Eagles should be
able to hold their own and get a decent result
in Addis Ababa before finishing up the job at
home during the second leg.
He encouraged the Eagles' players to be
focused and play the game of their lives in
Addis Ababa so as to brighten their World Cup
qualification chances.
"I however know that Nigeria's players always
rise up to the occasion when least expected. I
am tipping the Eagles to get a good result in
Addis Ababa and then wrap up the proceedings
when the Ethiopians visit us in Nigeria.
"I want to tell them to stick together and they
should close their eyes and play their best.
They should let the ball do the running and
ensure that they conserve their energies for
the latter part of the encounter," Nwanu
concluded.
Nwanu, who hails from Aboh Mbaise, Imo
State retired from football in 1998 with RKC
Waalwijk in Holland and he won 20 caps for
Nigeria. He was part of the squads for the
1994 FIFA World Cup and the 1988 Summer
Olympics and is now a pastor in Antwerp,
Belgium.
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