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Coach SUNDAY OLISEH Explains
Sunday Oliseh is a football icon and one of the most respected figures to have played the round leather game in Nigeria, Africa, and on the global stage. A key member of Nigeria’s golden generation of the 1990s, Oliseh captained the Super Eagles before ending his international career in 2002.
Till date, Oliseh remains a reference point whenever the discussion turns to the ideal midfielder in Nigerian football. He later served as head coach of the Super Eagles, where he posted commendable results before resigning to continue his coaching career abroad.
He currently runs a podcast titled Sunday Oliseh’s Global Football Insights, which is gaining wide attention among football lovers. On the show, Oliseh delivers in-depth football analysis in a simplified and engaging manner.
In a recent episode, Oliseh shared strong views on what Nigeria must do to return to its glorious days in African and world football, using Morocco’s emergence as Africa’s leading football nation as a clear example.
Below are excerpts from the discussion:
“I went to Morocco for the first time in 1997 when my son was born. He’s also Moroccan, half-born.
“But King Hassan II was the king then. Two years after he died, his son, who was schooling — I think in France — an educated young man, became king. Now he became king in 1999.
“Now what they did, being a very learned person, you see how good your football is does not depend on the federation. It depends on the country. The country delegates the federation, and the federation has to now do what the country wants them to do.
“In Nigeria’s case, we want to qualify. We want to win games. We want to win titles. For some countries, all they want is just to qualify. If I go now to coach Tanzania or Liberia or Seychelles, the country will celebrate if I just qualify for the Nations Cup. That is not the case with Nigeria.
“Nigeria’s ambition is that we are giants of Africa — in size, population, economy, and everything you can think of. And for that reason, we also have to be giants in results and win titles. We’ve shown it in the past; we can do it.
“Now going back to Morocco, what they did was that when this king came in, he started to build infrastructure. They set up the Mohammed VI Academy.
“Then in 2019, he opened the Mohammed VI Complex. This complex is world-class. It is even better than the one they have in France. What they have now is that every national team can train there, including the female team.
“Now it is a law in Morocco that the female teams must have a minimum wage in the league. I’m not talking about the male team — the female team. You cannot pay the ladies less than that.
“The female team started playing football when? Before 1999, it was almost forbidden. The female team got into football in 2001. Twenty-four years after, we had to fight to beat them in the final. We were losing 2–0, and then our girls showed spirit, came back, and won 3–2.
“So you see, they have built infrastructure, they have set up a strategy. One thing that is very clear in Morocco is accountability and responsibility. The country is pushing forward, and they are now Africa’s number one team.
“They were the first African nation to get to the semi-finals of the World Cup. They were bronze medalists at the last Olympics. They came third. They would have won it, but they lost to the eventual winners, Spain, in the semi-finals.
“When you look at it from every direction, Morocco has built infrastructure. They have a strategy. They have decided on a playing style. They have set up a wage system. Their male teams are doing well, and in the African Champions League, Moroccan clubs are dominant.
“They are winning trophies. They just won the Under-20 — a trophy we have never won. That tells you that being organized is not un-African. Moroccans are Africans. South Africans are Africans. So, we also just have to decide as a race that this is what we need to do, for the benefit of the people.
“Because of what King Mohammed VI did and the structures they built, there is now an industry employing millions of Moroccans. It is a football industry.
“This football thing is not just fun or going to the viewing centre. No. Football is job creation. If youths are not put into industries like sports, they will do wrong things. Our population is youth-populated.
“If anyone doubts that Nigerian youths are talented, look at our music and entertainment industry. When youths are allowed to set up their own businesses, we excel so much that even artists from the United States are begging to collaborate with Nigerian artists.
“I am optimistic because all we have to do is get it right. Everything is already there. We are like a bomb waiting to explode — but in the right direction.
“For me, FIFA rankings are not really important. The most improved nation in Africa and the number one nation in Africa right now is Morocco. They are record holders in African football.
“They have gotten to the semi-finals of the World Cup. The country sitting on the biggest potential — the country that should be ruling at the moment — is Nigeria.
“What you need most to succeed in football, business, and in the world is numbers. That is why China is dominating the world. They have numbers.
“And we also have numbers. Out of every 36 human beings in the world, one is Nigerian. That is the power of our population.”
-Jamiu Abubakar
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