Can home-based Eagles prove mettle against Mexico?

With foreign-based Super Eagles players unavailable for the friendly against Mexico in Los Angeles due to their involvement in pre-season training with their various clubs, home-based players have therefore been drafted for the encounter against El Tri.

The onus is therefore on the local players, who will be led by former Nigeria U-20 Coach Paul Aigbogun, to prove to senior national team manager, Gernot Rohr that he has all the while been making a grave mistake by ignoring them. However, if travel arragements went well, the Franco-German may still lead the team, writes Kunle Adewale

Former Nigeria U-20 Coach Paul Aigbogun will be in charge when the Super Eagles take on El Tri in an international friendly outing scheduled in Los Angeles, after Nigeria Football Federation, NFF Technical Director, Austin Eguavoen was denied visa to travel with the team.

The home-based players will battle the reigning Concacaf Gold Cup champions at the Los Angeles Coliseum at 4am Nigerian time on Sunday, July 4, in the absence of Gernot Rohr’s regular players who will be at their European clubs for pre-season training.

The home-based Super Eagles arrived in Los Angeles, United States of America on Thursday for the international friendly with Mexico taking place at the imposing Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
NFF’s FIFAMatch Agent, Jairo Pachon of Eurodata Sport confirmed on Thursday that the match will kick off at 8pmLA time today (4am in Nigeria on Sunday).

Before picking the 23 players that stormed America, Eguavoen disclosed that he sought the advice of Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) coaches including Plateau United’s Abdul Maikaba and Rivers United’s Stanley Eguma.

“Coach Paul saw some games on the continent and the league as well and I relied also a lot on my colleagues that are also in the league.
“When you give me a player from Enyimba, I ask Stanley Eguma, Ladan Bosso, Salisu and Maikaba. And if three out of the four speak well of a player it is okay. When you give me a player from Plateau I deviate from Maikaba and ask other coaches and they say the right thing about the player I just felt that’s the right way to go about it.”

After three days of preliminary training in Abuja, the NFF released the names of 23 players and left for the United States on Wednesday.
Mexico, however, have named a strong 45-man squad for the match, with Napoli winger Hirving Lozano, Porto’s Jesus Corona and Real Betis’ Andres Guardado all included.

Meanwhile, captain Ikechukwu Ezenwa has assured Nigerians that the team would give its best against Mexico in the high profile friendly.
The 32-year-old is back in the Super Eagles set-up after a lengthy absence.
The goalkeeper’s last involvement for the Super Eagles was as an unused substitute against Brazil on October 13, 2019, in Singapore.

A confident Ezenwa said: “We are looking forward to the game against Mexico in Los Angeles next week. It is a privilege to represent 200 million Nigerians; we just have to give our best to make the country proud.

“It is not easy meeting for the first time. Some are new to the national set-up but the most important thing is having that solidarity and coming together. As captain of the side, it is my job to bring them together so that we can perform the task ahead,” he said.

Unfortunately, for he home-based Eagles captain, injury denied him of the trip to America.
According to NFF’s Director of Communications, Ademola Olajire, as a result of injury to Ezenwa, the federation had to fast-track National Exempt papers for Tottenham Hotspur of England U23 goalkeeper, Joshua Oluwayemi to join the 22-man squad.

Indeed, the team’s goalkeeper trainer Alloy Agu believes the form of the invited goalkeepers were encouraging.

“The first training session with the goalkeepers was very positive,” Agu said. “They have been playing in the league and we expected them to showcase their form here and that is precisely what they have been doing.”

“Our training sessions had been good, the coaches have been pushing us enough because the task ahead is a big one,” Abia Warriors’ centre-back Adekunle Adeleke said on the eve of the team’s departure to the US. “We already know what we are going to face and we are hopeful of coming out with a great performance.”
Enyimba winger Anayo Iwuala is equally upbeat. “It’s been fun and all of us have been giving out our best and this is a great opportunity for the home-based Super Eagles to represent the nation. We are all putting our heads together to fulfil the task against Mexico.”

Rohr has been accused of treating the domestic players unfairly, but the Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Sunday Dare, said that it won’t be tolerated anymore.
Mr. Dare has hit out Super Eagles head coach Gernot Rohr over his unfair treatment of players from the Nigeria Professional Football League.

Since he took his role as the head coach, Rohr has come under criticism for not inviting more NPFL players to the national team.
The 68-year-old has relied on mostly foreign players since he took charge as Nigeria’s national team coach.

Eguavoen and not Rohr will be in charge when the home-based players take on Mexico at the Los Angeles Coliseum in an international friendly tomorrow, a decision that has not gone down well with the Sports Minister.

Dare expressed his disappointment when he visited the home-based players at their Abuja camp ahead of the trip to the United States.
The Sports Minister urged the Nigeria Football Federation NFF to have a talk with Rohr on his behaviour towards NPFL players.

“Rohr’s attitude towards home-based players is unacceptable, it’s negative to our football development and I call on the NFF to call him to order,” Dare said.
The former Burkina Faso manager signed a new two-year contract last year, and part of the conditions in the deal is for him to include more domestic players in his plan.

But so far, only Iwuala has played a part in recent Super Eagles games, with Rohr saying all of Nigeria’s best players were in Europe.
The two countries have previously played each other five times with their last three encounters ending in draws.

The Super Eagles are yet to win any of their meeting with El Tri and their last defeat came at the 1995 FIFA Confederation Cup in Riyadh. The North Americans won 5-4 on penalties after a 1-1 draw at the end of extra-time.

Home-based Eagles to US

Goalkeepers: John Noble (Enyimba FC); Nwabali Stanley Bobo (Lobi Stars)

Defenders: Olisa Ndah (Akwa United); Adekunle Adeleke (Abia Warriors); Tope Olusesi (Rangers International); Imoh Obot (Enyimba FC); Tebo Franklin Degaulle (Nasarawa United); Lawal Oriyomi Murtala (Kwara United); Enyinnaya Kazie (Rivers United)

Midfielders: Anthony Shimaga (Rangers International); Seth Mayi (Akwa United); Uche Onwuasonaya (Plateau United); Samuel Nnoshiri (Katsina United)

Forwards: Anayo Iwuala (Enyimba FC); Stephen Jude (Kwara United); Ibrahim Olawoyin (Rangers International); Charles Ashimene (Akwa United); Auwalu Ali Malam (Kano Pillars); Nenrot Emmanuel (Plateau United); Abdulmutalif Sanusi (Katsina United); Sunday Adetunji(Rivers United); Mohammed Zulkifilu (Plateau Unit