League is suffering a lack of commitment
Former
Eagles and Rangers International defender, Kingsley Obiekwu, has
expressed disappointment at the state of decay that is being
experienced in the Nigerian Premier League (NPL).
The defender, who
played both in the local league before travelling abroad, compared the
league in his time to the present. “In those days, the league we had
was at least occupied by committed people; both the players and their
all those involved,” he said. “Everybody worked together to make sure
that things went well. We had better league games and we were able to
bring the crowd to the stadiums to watch us play. Now money has taken
an importance that league managers do not care about the enjoyment
which the spectators would want. Can you imagine the players not being
paid their allowances? How do you expect to get the best out of them? I
hear that some of them are even owed sign on fees for the past two
years. Some of the players get their daily bread from this, and when a
man is thinking of where to get that, you can expect his attention to
be divided.”
The players too
He also blamed the
attitude of some of the players, accusing some of not being committed.
“I hear that when they are paid their allowance some of the players
decide to stay away and not come for training,” he said. “When you do
not train, you will not be able to give your best.” Obiekwu also gave
suggestions on what the NPL can do to bring in more spectators. “There
is the need for a reorientation of our mentality,” he said. “Not
everything should be about money. I think the NPL should put modalities
in place that would encourage each party to any agreement in the league
to stick to their part of the bargain. We do not want our players to
become beggars on the streets. Some of these players are not there for
the love of the game and that is why they may not able to give their
all. If you are expecting something you need to give up some other
things. With persistence, you will find out that you will end up
getting all that you want; success, fame and fortune.”
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