Osaze, Nwofor can lead Eagles to glory –Rufai

Posted by admin Headlines, Soccer, Sports, State News Tuesday, June 10th, 2014

Osaze Odemwingie

Former Super Eagles captain, Peter Rufai, has commended Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi for picking Stoke City’s Osaze Odemwingie and Uche Nwofor for the World Cup, saying the two forwards could be potent weapons for the team in Brazil.

The 2014 World Cup in the South American country kicks off on Thursday.

The Eagles are in Group F alongside two-time champions Argentina, Iran and debutants Bosnia-Herzegovina. Nigeria open their campaign on Monday against Iran at the Arena da Baixada, Curitiba.

“Stephen Keshi has succeeded in picking hungry players like Osaze Odemwingie and Uche Nwofor. Nwofor is a fighter, he has character. These are the kind of players a nation needs at the World Cup,” the ex-Nigeria goalkeeper told our correspondent in Lagos on Tuesday.

“The matches are not going to be easy. Even Iran and Bosnia are not going to be easy. It’s like boxing, you are beating your opponent but you are amazed that he is absorbing the punches and keeps coming at you. That is how these teams would come at the Eagles but the good thing is that we have a squad that can crush teams.”

However, Rufai, who represented Nigeria at the 1994 and 1998 World Cups, said it would be difficult to single out a particular player who would shoulder the burden of the team, as they aim to reach the quarter-final of the competition for the first time in five appearances.

He said, “It’s not good to anticipate; you might have confidence in a player, only for the player to play below expectations while a player you never thought of would be the one who carries the day, just like Sunday Mba did at last year’s Africa Cup of Nations.

“Nobody thought he would produce such a wonderful performance at the competition in the midst of Europe-based players but he did. It will be like that at the World Cup; we will see players willing to play football under Keshi.”

The former Go Ahead Eagles man, a late minute inclusion in the 1994 and 1998 World Cup squads, advised players dropped from the World Cup party not to see it as the end of their careers.

“They should be optimistic of making the World Cup next time; some people never thought (Joseph) Yobo could make the World Cup team but he is in the team,” Rufai added.

“In my own time, nobody thought I would play at the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations but I made it. In Tunisia (1994 Africa Cup of Nations), Emmanuel Amuneke never wore a jersey until the final against Zambia. We were making jest of him, in fact, he was even making jest of himself.

“But on the final day, Amuneke was shocked to find out that he would be playing and he was the one that saved us with two goals.”

-Punchwp_posts