Nigeria: No. No. No. Siasia, Please Forgive Osaze

Daily Independent (Lagos)

Peter Edema

18 June 2011

There is general feeling of de javu in the land over Super Eagles’ excellent performance in recent times.

The team in its first competitive match under Coach Samson Siasia walloped Ethiopia 4-0 in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier, while 48 hours later, it handed Kenya Harambee Stars a 3-0 defeat in an international friendly.

It has earlier defeated Sierra Leone 2-1 in an international friendly in Lagos, Siasia’s first cap as Super Eagles coach.

Siasia broke the jinx against Argentina with 4-1 win in an international friendly in Abuja, even if he had to struggle to a 2-2 draw against Ethiopia in a Nations Cup qualifier four days later in Addis Ababa.

The result in Ethiopia only means that Super Eagles wins its remaining two matches with at least two goals margin against Guinea in its last group match in Abuja. The implication of this is that our destiny is still in our hands. It is not a situation if Nigeria wins and Guinea loses. We just have to win the remaining two matches.

While credit should be given to Siasia for putting together a team in a very short time that is engendering confidence in the people, after a series of unconvincing performances under Coach Shaibu Amodu, culminating in Nigeria’s World Cup worst outing last year in South Africa, it must be noted that the successes so far achieved, to a great extent, have to do not only with the quality of available talents coupled with their commitments, but also that the successes are also dependent on the technical crew working in tandem with the players with the sole aim of returning the team to its glorious past when it was rated fifth shortly before the 1994 World Cup in USA.

Nigerians are beginning to express the hope that sooner than later, Super Eagles will begin to instill fear in the minds of its opponents as the case was in the 80’s and early 90’s. In short, Nigerians are looking forward to a team that will replicate its 1994 exploits when it won the Africa Cup of Nations in Tunisia, albeit the last trophy won by it.

However, after the 4-0 defeat of Ethiopia in Abuja, one of the players, Osaze Odemwingie, left the team without getting the coach’s permission. And this has led to a misunderstanding between the player and the coach. Osaze, after leaving camp without permission accused the coach in his Twitter page of having “issues.”

As reported by BBC, Odemwingie implied in his Twitter rant that that he opted out of the Kenya friendly because of injury. He wrote: “Unlike me, my finishing in training today was good. Hearing something that Siasia is angry, I left. He needs to think a bit or he got issues.” He later deleted the comment but not before dozens of his followers had voiced their disapproval, with one urging him to “calm down.”

In the match against Ethiopia, Osaze’s introduction in the second half changed the game in favour of Nigeria, despite having to go through serious treatment to be fit for the match. But he had to excuse himself from the friendly against Kenya for him to treat himself properly before his club’s weekend English Premier League match against Liverpool that they won 3-1. Osaze’s commitment to the Super Eagles is not in doubt, even Rivers State governor, Rotimi Amaechi, attested to this fact during the second Africa Independent Television (AIT) Footballer of the Year Award in Port Harcourt last March.

Siasia’s reaction was shutting him out of the friendly against Argentina and the Nations Cup qualifier against Ethiopia. After these matches, reports had it that Siasia wants Osaze to apologise before being considered for a recall to the national team. I remember Osaze apologised the following week after his Twitter rant.

“I must confess that I poured out my anger on him in frustration, but it is nothing personal,” said Osaze “It sounded rude, but we don’t have any problems, we are all together for a common cause. I have said I am sorry and I do not mean to hurt anyone. Hopefully, we can keep working together.”

Odemwingie’s outburst led to suggestions that there is a deep-lying rift in camp between the senior players and the coach, but the forward dismissed any such suggestions.

“There is no division at all because it’s all about me. It was a mistake on my part tweeting that way to express my frustration about my injury. But it will never happen again. My assurance to Nigerians is that everything is okay and I am always ready like I have been doing before to give my best to the national team,” Osaze noted.

I am one of those in support of his two-match ban. Indiscipline in any form should not be condoned. Let us ask ourselves what happened to Etim Esin, the Tarila Okorowantas of this world. These were bundle of talents and fans’ delight in their days, but they allowed indiscipline to put off the light of their glowing success and extinguish the flames of their promising career before it could blossom to global appreciation or before they could mature to world stars they were born and destined to be.

However, Siasia must understand that the essence of punishment is to correct and not to destroy. He should realise that a two-match ban especially against a high-profile team such as Argentina is enough punishment for a player whose commitment to the national team is not in doubt. Siasia needs to know that he is not just a coach of the national team but also a manager which presupposes that he is not only interested in the players’ performances on the field of play but also out of the field. To err is human, but to forgive is divine.

Siasia should temper justice with mercy by recalling Osaze. He is just like a father to this young man and as a father, your son must one day offend you, do you have to break him because of that? Of course no, so Siasia please forgive Osaze, don’t allow this issue to linger on beyond the limit.

You need Osaze as well as he also needs you via the Super Eagles. Siasia was once a player like Osaze and should understand the psychological make-up of players. Osaze must learn from this. He needs to be humble.

Humility is no stupidity.

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