The mesmerising skills of former Super Eagles’ captain, Austin ‘Jay Jay’ Okocha have been recalled by a Kenyan journalist, Ben Ahenda, who still relishes memories of a day when he personally met the former PSG of France midfield ace.
However, in this chat with Sports247 at the Championship of African Nations (CHAN 2024), with corporate support from Showtime, a leading brand in football promotions, Ahenda, who works for Standard Media Group in Kenya, noted that CAF’s unusual technicalities prevented Okocha from winning at least one African Footballer of The Year award …
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Q: We learnt that you once met Nigeria’s former captain, Austin Okocha, in Kenya. What memories do you have about him?
A: Austin Okocha was one of the best midfielders that we saw with top performances in most international tournaments like the Africa Cup of Nations.
During his time, Okocha was also my friend. I met him when he played against Harambee Stars in Nairobi. That was in the 1990s, but I already knew him as a talented footballer.
Q: What can you say about the attitude and character you saw in Okocha when you met him personally?
A: He was a great footballer of good character … well disciplined and a match-maker.
Q: Which match do you remember as the one in which Okocha played at his best?
A: Basically, Okocha impressed me in so many matches. I can’t particularise any game in which he was at his best. For me, basically, Okocha was a game changer. He impressed in most matches that he played.
I remember him playing along with Daniel Amokachi, Sunday Oliseh, Yakubu Aiyegbeni, Tijjani Babangida … the list is long.
Q: Tell us more about your one-on-one encounter with Jay Jay…
A: I interviewed him after a match that he played for Nigeria against Kenya. The game ended 1-1, and Okocha was tackled hard by one of the Kenya players. That meant he could not help Nigeria get victory on the Kenyan territory.
Q: Despite all his heroics, Okocha could not win the African best player of the year award. What do you think was responsible for that?
A: When it comes to the selection of the African Footballer of The Year, there are some many factors that come into play. You can be a good player but still fail to win it. So, basically, it was a disappointment, but it could be due to certain technical issues.
Maybe he couldn’t make it to that level because of other players who were also doing well at the same time with him or due to some unexplained reasons. Whatever those reasons were, Okocha was a match maker in his days and throughout his international career.
Q: Generally, what do you see as the changes now seen in African football from what it was before?
A: Very much. When you look at the kind of football that people like Jay Jay Okocha were playing, compared to what we now see, you would agree with me that then it was serious football. Nowadays, it looks as if the standard of football has gone down.
Basically, in Africa, the quality of football has dropped when compared to what we saw from the likes of Okocha, Sunday Oliseh, Daniel Amokachi, Tijjani Babangida, Joseph Dosu, Rashidi Yekini … the list is endless…
Q: What can you say are the missing factors in the current standard of African football?
A: In the past, players across Africa used to play football because of passion and love for the game. Nowadays, because of professionalism, whereby money has been injected into it, most players are today adoring what they can gain more than passion for the game. They prefer to get money, as opposed to the love of playing football.
So, you might find out that passion mixed with the love of money makes a player look for what he can gain financially, not just for passion. Sadly, this factor has eroded much of the value of football, because many players are not playing because they love the game. They are now playing for money.
Q: How will you rate this year’s Championship of African Nations, tagged CHAN 2024, especially as we have three countries co-hosting for the first time?
A: If you look at CHAN this year, the fact that it is being co-hosted by three countries is history. It also helped Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya make better planning for the competition. They had enough time to plan for it and share the expenses.
If you compare the CHAN of this year with previous ones, you will realise that this one was better organised and well-structured, compared to when only one nation hosted it.
Q: Nigeria had a poor outing at this year’s CHAN, and many of their fans are blaming the coach, Eric Chelle. Do you agree with them?
A: Coaches should not be blamed for the management of football in a country. The management of football – not only in Nigeria, but also in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and the rest of the world – should be blamed on the national federations.
The coach only selects players who are in the national league in Nigeria. So, those blaming the coach for the dismal performance of their team should tell us or tell the country the factors that make them say so.
Q: What then do you think caused Nigeria’s problems?
A: From the word go, Nigeria was struggling to play in the field. Meaning, even if the coach is the best, once the league gives him weak players, there’s no magic the coach can do to win matches.
The competitiveness of a league gives a coach the best players. When he gets competitive players, they will compete well, and they will win matches.
Q: Some teams at this year’s CHAN came with 17 year old players and many aged under 20; do you think the Nigerian players were older?
Q: Yes, I do. For me, the Nigerian players, if I’m not wrong, are in their last ages to play football. Most of them, averagely, are between 30 and 35 years old. That means this could be their last tournament to play.
On the other hand, the future of any country – whether it is Kenya, Nigeria or Uganda – is in the young players. So, the sooner you engage young players in such competitions as CHAN, the better for your country. That would be a step to also play well in the next Africa Cup of Nations.
That’s why CAF made it that the Nations Cup is just two years after each CHAN. The 2027 edition will also be hosted here in East Africa … in the same venues of Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Zanzibar.
Q: What do you think made Nigeria’s coach to list old players for this year’s CHAN?
A: Both young and old players can be picked by a coach, depending on which are available for him. A coach needs a free hand to make his choices. So, in that case, you might blame Nigeria’s coach in the aspect of picking old players.
However, if the coach thinks that the old players are better than the young players, what else can he do? So, this means the coach thought that young players who may be playing in the Nigerian league were not ripe to play in the CHAN.
Q: … but wouldn’t it have been better to pick young players and plan for the future with them?
A: That actually makes sense, but the problem is that a coach is employed to win matches, not lose them. So, Eric Chelle came with old players who he thought would win matches but, unfortunately, they could not work it out for him.
Q: Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us…
A: You are welcome….
