Former captain of the senior national team of Nigeria Ogenyi Onazi has blamed the culture of calling up too many new players to the team as why they failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Nigeria lost out on away goal rule in their two legged play off game against Ghana, drawing 0-0 away before a 1-1 draw in Abuja cost them a spot at the tournament. It will be the first time Nigeria won’t be at the tournament since 2006.
Speaking as a guest on Sportville which was aired on Channels TV, Onazi gave his opinion on why the team failed to make it to the World Cup in Qatar depsite the avalanche of talented players in the team.
“There were too many new faces. It was a case of you score one goal in Europe then you are invited. The next game you see another set of players getting a call up because he scored in his club. That is not how to build a solid national team,” Onazi said on the show handled by veteran sports journalist Tony Ubani.
“It is a slap in the face that we won’t be at the mundial. It is very painful and the reality would set in when action starts in Qatar. It is a miss that would affect everybody. The players would have loved to be there, the sports journalists, the fans, everybody”, he stated.
