Former Nigeria senior team Captain, Fatai Yekini has commended the leadership of the current Super Eagles team, Wilfred Ndidi but called on the Nigeria Football Federation to always celebrate the Captains at retirement for further selfless performance for future Captains.
Fatai Yekini, who played for the Green Eagles, now the Super Eagles from 1978 to 1984; and handed the captain’s band to Late Stephen Keshi, praised the continuous excellent leadership of the senior national team by current captain, Wilfred Ndidi. According to him: “Nigeria is just so blessed to have true and selfless leaders wearing the Captain band. But what is sad and painful is that these Captains are not celebrated after leaving the National team. I even heard that Wilfred Ndidi was even ready to pay the money owed the players in this ongoing Nations Cup in Morocco before the NFF later paid.”
The former Mighty Jets, Leventis United, JIB Rocks and Ranchers Bees of Kaduna player, calls on the Nigeria Football Federation under the leadership of Ibrahim Musa Gusau to put a stop to our Captains retiring unceremoniously. In his words: “I thank you Mr. Sammy for giving me this great platform to say what have been disturbing my mind for a very long time. It’s a very bad thing the way our Captains retire from National team. Look at Ahmed Musa, our Captain that just announced his retirement just like that without any official celebration to mark the selfless service he rendered the Super Eagles. During the reign of Ahmed Musa as the captain of Nigeria, everything went smoothly. There was no issue of strike or refusal to train or play match by the Super Eagles. There are many things that boy must have done behind the scene that is not made public. Such a player should not just quietly bow out like that.”
Fatai Yekini continues: “It didn’t start with Ahmed Musa, it started with when I was still in the national team in 1977 when late Christian Chukwu wanted retiring, nobody cared to know when he wanted retiring. When Segun Odegbami wanted retiring it was a low key too without any form of celebration. Right from our senior colleagues up to this time of Ahmed Musa, it’s just like when u are watching a film and it comes to the end and everybody will get up, that’s how Nigeria rates our National team Captains. We don’t position them in a way they will be celebrated after retirement. I mean, a farewell official match with all the razzmatazz to show the whole world that a leader of a great national team of a great country like Nigeria is retiring. Every retirement of our national team Captains should come with a match that the whole world will see and they will be appreciated. He should be given a microphone to talk, where he will appreciate the fans, his supporters, the NFF, they will give him balls to kick into the crowd, walahi, the memory will stick to the brain of all and sundry and the player in particular.”
Fatai Yekini, who handed the Captain band to Late Stephen Keshi concludes: “We came back from the Nations Cup in 1982, Christian Chukwu didn’t show up, we just heard from friends that he’s retired from the National team, no any official statement. Nobody bothered to ask him why he didn’t show up or why he didn’t come back to the National team. All these is because Nigeria didn’t show any form of appreciation. I call on the NFF, who is lucky to have a good man in Alhaji Musa Gusau to please put a stop to this by organising a befitting farewell match for Ahmed Musa, where he will officially announce his retirement from the National team, and it should be the custom from now on with all our Captains and other retiring players that showed commitment and patriotism while active.”
