Super Eagles coach Stephen Keshi is looking for new ways to return the team to glory. Some football experts have, however, drawn his attention to some salient issues in his rebuilding process, writes KAZEEM BUSARI.That Nigeria will not feature in the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea is no news but it sure serves as a mental torture to the followers of the Super Eagles and some coaches who see Nigerias failure to beat Guinea in their last qualifying game in Abuja as a sucker punch that could have been avoided.As Nigeria begin another campaign to qualify for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations and at the same time look forward to the 2014 World Cup to be hosted by Brazil, former internationals Adegoke Adelabu and Olusegun Fetuga have advised Eagles coach, Stephen Keshi, on the best way to bring the team back from mediocrity to an enviable position.It will not be an easy task, both men agree, but it must start with the coachs attitude towards the players and his willingness to exploit the benefits of the domestic league. Both men insist that emulating Brazil in the aspect of developing players, will not only help the players but strengthen the team in the long run.Adelabu, an outstanding midfielder in IICC Shooting Stars of the 1980s and the founder of Eko United, is particularly worried that the home-based players, who he believes are hungry for success, have not been given enough opportunity to play in the Eagles.Many of the players in the Eagles were not invited from the domestic league. The players found their way to Europe before they could get recognition. Even when the player is not aspiring to play in the national team, the coaches invite him just because he plays abroad, Adelabu said.Such players have not contributed to the development of Nigerian football; they are just playing to survive so it is dangerous to build the national team around them.The secret of Brazils success in football is the template they use in guiding their teams. There is consistency in the styles played by their men and womens teams, at all the levels.There is the need for Keshi to interact with the coaches of the other national teams so that they can fashion a particular style of play that will help the senior team in the long run.Our coaches need to be taught the modern techniques of building a team. If they interact, they can come up with a winning formula. Coaching certificates are given as certificates of attendance, not of competence. To be competent, you must put aside your ego and learn from other top coaches.Fetuga also shares a similar view on the need to emulate the Brazilians. He however urges Keshi to be a source of inspiration to the players in order to get the best out of them.The Eagles technical department is seriously deficient. This was evident during the qualifiers and I hope Keshi is prepared to change that, Fetuga, who featured in the 1987 and 1989 U-17 World Cup finals, said.A coach can never do it alone in modern football because games are now played on technical basis. In the past, when it was just skills, Brazil and Argentina were the best but now a whole new technicality has been introduced in football. Techniques win games in modern football.Under Sebastian Broderick, as junior player, I played my heart out because the coach knew how to bring the best out of the players. Theres a way he worked on the players that made us want to die on the pitch for Nigeria. Keshi needs to bring such attitude to the team to achieve his purpose.The fundamental issue in our football is the problem of developing dedicated players. If you check the records, all the world champions have their players starting from their domestic leagues before going abroad. Argentina, Brazil, Spain and Italy all groomed their players at home before winning the World Cup.Nigeria, instead, is hoping to build the Eagles around players who are groomed in Europe. This will make it difficult to have a consistent playing style.It is not a coincidence that the 2009 Champions League featured 73 Brazilians at the group stage; and no fewer than 345 started the 2011 edition. This is because coaches see them, not only as skilful, but consistent based on their development from the grass roots.Even though Keshi has promised to bring more of the domestic league players into the Eagles, both Adelabu and Fetuga say he should not be pressured into settling for mediocre players who might have been made famous by irregularities in the Nigeria Premier League. So far, only three players from the domestic league are in the Eagles.Adelabu said, The problem with the league is that it has lost the trust of the football fans. They still find it hard to believe that a particular team won fairly. This started when teams were awarded victories from the boardroom of the Nigeria Premier League.Another problem with the league players is that they dont work for the goals. It is one thing to play in a team, it is another to work for goals. It is not sufficient for a player to play within his ability; there has to be something more.If a home-based player does not give me something special beyond what I see in his foreign-based colleagues, I cant use him as replacement for the established players.A lot of things can bring you into the team but I want to see what will keep you in the team.Ill advise the coaches to also learn from the players. A training session should be 30 per cent of what a coach gives to the players and 70 per cent of what the coach learns from them. He must learn how best to use the players in order to know how to deploy them for specific roles.Fetuga, who currently manages a grass-root club, believes the league has players that must be refined before they can play at the highest level.Theres so much to learn outside league football. Playing in the league is different from playing in the Eagles. But if Keshi can make them see the difference and make them play as such, theyll fit in his team, Fetuga said.On the employment of a foreigner as a technical director in the Nigeria Football Federation, Adelabu said it would not add any value to the system if the Nigerian coaches are not willing to learn.He said, I dont think it is wise for the NFF to go for a foreign technical director. It is difficult for some of our coaches to learn from other people because of pride and ignorance. I was baffled when a coach sponsored by the NFF to understudy an English Premier League coach came back to say there was nothing to learn. How can that be
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