Former Nigerian defender, Bright Omokaro, has launched a scathing criticism of the current Super Eagles squad, accusing them of lacking the seriousness and commitment displayed by past generations.
Omokaro, a member of the 1988 AFCON silver-winning team, highlighted the stark contrast between the current squad and the teams of yesteryear.
“No Holds Barred” former Eagles left-back, Ifeanyi Udeze, the AFCON 1988 silver medal winner said there was a very big cooperation and cohesion in past Super Eagles teams.
“When you are invited, you must show that you can do it. We always had time to train together before the match proper; there was commitment back then,”
“If you are stubborn and you don’t know the job, they drop you. Your stubbornness has to comply with what you can offer because the team wanted to win. If you are not part of the system and your impact is not there, then your stubbornness is absolutely nothing.
“There is no seriousness in this present team. You can singlehandedly pick out the ones that want to win. In those days, everybody wanted to win; you would see that seriousness in the team. But now, they even invite players you’ve never heard of to the national team. It is pathetic.
However, Omokaro believes the Eagles still have a chance to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup provided they put in the necessary work and seriousness.
“It’s a slim chance (qualifying for the 2026 World Cup), but football is unpredictable,” he added. “Victory requires a lot of sacrifice. If you don’t work hard, it will not work out well.
