Former Abia State governor and pillar of sports, Dr Orji Uzor Kalu, has given a tip on Super Eagles’ success chances in the forthcoming World Cup scheduled for Brazil.
According to him, if Nigeria’s soccer ruling body, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), did the right thing, Nigeria would definitely break record by lifting the trophy.
The business mogul who was the guest lecturer at the centenary lecture organised yesterday by the Oyo State Council of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) at Dapo Aderogba Hall Press Centre, Iyaganku, Ibadan, took the audience back to memory lane on how Nigeria achieved the feat of emerging 5th in the world and got to the round of 16 in the USA ’94 World Cup, reminiscing that the NFF hired a potential coach and also put the right pegs in the right hole by engaging a formidable crew for the team.
“I was with the National Sports Commission at that time when Chief SB williams sent me to Holland to hire Westerhof for the Super Eagles. Westerhof told me what he needed to recruit his own backroom staff and I accepted if he would pay them from his own pocket. That was how Bonfrere Joe came. While the National Sports Commission was paying Westerhof, the latter was paying Bonfrere from his own pocket. Everything was right within the technical crew and we achieved a lot”, Dr Kalu recalled with passion.
“ I had recommended Stephen Keshi for the job of Super Eagles a long time ago but many people had kicked against it until Nigerians agreed with my views after making mistakes and now Keshi has made us proud again by wining the AFCON 2013 for us”, he further enthused
“I believe he can do it if we all support his vision as
Kalu also, while analysing the problems facing Enyimba Football Club of Aba who was sent packing from this year’s Champions League in the first round of the tournament by Real Bamako, also revealed his roles that ensured the team’s consistent successes when he was governor of Abia State.
“I have always told journalists that I would not comment on Eyimba FC because it belongs to the government. I always want posterity to judge every of my action because you people are the ones always criticising me for sitting on the bench whenever Eyimba was playing” ,he said.
“Many people criticised me for always passing instructions to the coach on who to substitute and when the player should be substituted and what were the outcomes? I was able to win the league five times in a row and dashed it out the sixth time. “In my tenure, Enyimba Football Club also won the elusive Champions Cup for Nigeria for the first time in 2005 and retained it the subsequent year.
For me, that was one major factor missing in Enyimba of today”.
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