A former assistant coach in the Super Falcons, Rolandson Odeh has faulted complaints by Nigerians over the absence of the female national team’s vastly improved left-back, Ashleigh Plumptre’s name in the All Stars squad for the recent Women’s Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.
Sports247 reports that, rather than join the bandwagon of cynical reactions and aspersions by many fans, Odeh opined that the Confederation of African Football (CAF) technical assessors should not be questioned about their choices.
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Odeh, a veteran tactician, who has coached a number of clubs in the Nigerian Women’s Football League (NWFL), declared: “We are not going to question CAF. The technical department has a way of listing players.
“So, since Ashleigh Plumptre was not there, that means there are other players who, in the technical committee’s own opinion, were probably better than her.”
However, while urging Nigerians to take the development in good fate, Odeh admitted that Plumptre was a standout performer in the Falcons’ surge to a historic 10th WAFCON title.
“We just have to take it the way it is; but that does not take anything away from her or from her performances.
“(We cannot deny) what she has actually done in this tournament. As far as I am concerned, she was one of our players who actually stood out.”
He concluded with a verdict that the former Leicester City Ladies of England defender, who now features for Al-Ittihad of Saudi Arabia, played a key role in stabilising the Falcons’ backline in all their matches at Maroc 2024.
“She stood out in the structure that led to getting this victory and the trophy for us,” Odeh reasoned, but insisted it does not mean players from other countries were not better than her.
