Onyebuchi Ezigbo
3 August 2007
Lagos — The Nigeria Football Association (NFA) has said it will not reverse its position on keeping Chelsea midfield star John Obi Mikel out of the next Super Eagles match, which is against Lesotho.
The Glass House said yesterday that its hard-line posture on the former junior international was to instil discipline in the country's national team players.
NFA spokesman, Mr. Ademola Olajire said in a statement in Abuja that it is committed to ensuring that all Nigerian players are subjected to discipline, which is an important element of human endeavour.
Olajire also quoted NFA Secretary General, Ojo-Oba as saying, that there was no time the young midfielder was ever going to be considered for the national teams again, and that all that the association wanted to do was to make a point that no one can slight the nation and then want to "embrace it through the back door".
According to him, the FA was forced to taking the hard line, after the player snubbed the nation on two occasions without the courtesy of calling the association or his coaches to explain why he was unavailable for national duties.
"The young man was invited for a Nations Cup qualifier away in Lesotho but failed to show up without having the courtesy of a phone call to the coach or the FA. That was a first offence, so nobody took it seriously.
But we invited him to another Nations Cup qualifier against Uganda and he failed to show up, again, without the courtesy of a phone call to the FA.
We also sent three letters to his club to release him for our medical personnel to examine him but received no reply.
The U-23 Coach, Samson Siasia invited him for a couple of games but did not as much as call the coach he would not be able to come. Since that time, nothing has happened to show that the boy is willing to play for his country", Ojo-Oba stated.
He noted that though Mikel is a bundle of asset to the national teams, the issue of discipline in the national teams is more paramount than any individual player or groups.
The FA's tough stance on the star of Flying Eagles, silver finish at Holland 2005 flies in the grain of appeals from a number of individuals including former national team players for Mikel to be forgiven.
Earlier in the week Adokiye Amiesimaka, a member of the epoch making 1980 Nations Cup winning Eagles, made a passionate case for the youngster to be forgiven insinuating that it was such antics by soccer authorities that drove him out of the game at a young age soon after Nigeria's conquest of African football.
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