EAGLE EYE This week, I extend my write-up under the above headline into ‘Part Two’ simply because I need to put the records straight about my intentions in the original article last week Friday.
The need for clarity arose from a misconception thay was arrived at by a fellow journalist, who concluded that I had predicted the Super Eagles would win AFCON 2025. He apparently took a cursory look at the headline and did not bother to read the article.
Read Also: Ademola Lookman’s Style Excites Tekkers Academy’s Captain Fatai Fuad | Sports247 Nigeria
Even at that, I beg to believe a thoroughbred journalist worth his salt should know the import of the modal verb ‘must’ as an imperative word.
It’s a word that provides compulsion, affirmation, obligation and emphasis. In effect, the import of my headline is to remind the Super Eagles that they just have to win the upcoming AFCON in order to soothe the nerves of all football loving Nigerians.
So, stating that they must win AFCON 2025 is not the same as hoping they will clinch it (not to mention predicting that they will be the winners). It simply means that I actually ordered them to go and win the upcoming competition in order to face a whiplash…
Well, a credible argument could be that not all orders are obeyed nor do all acts of obedience lead to expected positive results. At the same time, you can force a horse to a river, but you can’t force it to drink. Which infers that the Super Eagles could decide not to obey my order.
That surely would be their prerogative, but they have to be reminded that dire consequences usually trail a floated order.
Which goes to say that our players should be ready to face a whiplash should they fail to win AFCON 2025 … number one of which is that many of them will not be invited to grace the next Eagles’ squad in the aftermath of AFCON 2025. Yes, heads will surely roll if we fail to clinch our fourth continental title.
Ironically, many of the players already know where the pendulum is swinging, and they have started bowing out one after the other (honourably). This explains recent news about the international retirements of William Troost-Ekong and Ola Aina (which we just have to accept until they both publicly state otherwise).
Hasty pronouncements, you might say, which is why many ex-players are already calling for a huge overhaul of the Eagles before they fly to Maroc 2025. Why not look for raw gems that will sparkke when found, than stick with a bucket full of diamonds that you have, but all fail to shine?
At this point, I beg to disagree with anyone suggesting that home-based players should be used to prosecute the AFCON assignment. Players who could not win the less demanding Championship of African Nations (CHAN) must not be saddled with the much more intense AFCON duty.
In the same vein, I also beg to disagree with those calling for the sack of Eric Chelle. Of the truth, I have never agreed with the decision to hire him in the first place, but that does not mean we should drop him midstream.
That was the mistake our football egg heads made after Gernot Rohr qualified us for the 2022 edition, but Augustine Eguavoen was given the task of taking over the team while the Franco-Gernan was dropped.
So, let’s not follow the maddening crowd and let’s learn from our past foibles. It’s better you lose with all your efforts faultless than to take so many steps that would still see you end up with eggs on your face.
So, we go back to the beginning … our Eagles must win AFCON 2025 not only to soothe the taut nerves of their fans but to also save their spots in the Nigerian team…
