Poor policy in players recruitments, bane of Nigerian clubs’ continentals – Aliyu Zubair
By Muyideen Aliyu
Inconsistency, and poor management in player recruitments has been identified as major factors preventing Nigerian clubs from progressing beyond the group stage of continental football competitions.
A Former Head Coach of the Flying Eagles, Aliyu Zubair, made this known in llorin while featuring on Kwara SWAN’s Sports Hard Talk programme on Wednesday .
Zubair, who is currently managing a second-division side in Egypt, Telecom Sports Club, said Nigerian clubs would continue to struggle in CAF competitions unless they abandon the culture of short-term player recruitments.
According to him,” Clubs aiming to compete successfully on the continent must retain a core group of players for at least three or more seasons to build cohesion and understanding”
“We will continue to struggle in continental competitions unless we change our orientation towards short-term signings,” he said.
The front line tactician explained that many successful African clubs sign players on three- to four-year contracts, allowing them to develop teamwork and consistency over time to built synergy and confidence of the players.
“In other African clubs, players are signed for three to four seasons, giving them the opportunity to play together for a long period. This has enable them gain advantage over clubs here in Nigeria,” he remarked.
The former El-Kanemi Warriors coach advised Nigerian clubs that would represent the country in next season’s CAF competitions to commence preparations early and engage in international friendly matches to prepare adequately for the challenges ahead.
He commended the board of the Nigeria Premier Football League for creating a level playing field that allows privately owned clubs to compete favourably with government-owned teams.
Zubair stressed that the development has contributed to the increasing number of private clubs gaining promotion to the top-flight league.
The coach further noted that governments should focus on providing infrastructure and creating an enabling environment rather than directly running football clubs, pointing out that football remains a business and be treated as such for a meaningful development.
Earlier, the Chairman of Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (Kwara SWAN), Mallam Ayodeji Ismail, said the association’s Sports Hard Talk programme has become a veritable platform for engaging stakeholders on issues relating to sports development and to set agenda for the policy makers.
He added that the association would continue to promote and amplify the sports sector through meaningful engagement with relevant stakeholders and to generate quality news materials for the SWAN members.
Highlight of the event was the presentation of a letter of invitation to Coach Zubair as facilitator for Kwara SWAN’s seminar for coaches in the state, scheduled to hold later this month.