Former Super Eagles striker and coach Samson Siasia has claimed that many footballers born in Europe who represent Nigeria do so because they were unable to break into other national teams.
Speaking on UTVAfrica with Emmanuel Babayaro, Siasia mentioned the difference between players of his generation and the current crop in the Super Eagles.
“The crop of players we had during that era, 1990–1998, were great players that left the shores of Nigeria, went to Europe and came back, not now that we are bringing in players from Europe to come and play for Nigeria – two different things,” he said.
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According to him, players of his time fought their way to Europe after proving themselves at home, whereas today’s squad is dominated by those who were born or raised abroad.
“Kids that were born in Europe or went at an early age doing well for their clubs are back to play for the national team. If they had a chance to play for a European country, great players, they won’t come. We struggled and made it to Europe but they were born,” he added.
A significant number of the current Super Eagles stars fall into this category, including Alex Iwobi, William Troost-Ekong, Ademola Lookman, Ola Aina, Collins Ajayi, and Felix Agu, among others.
