U20WC: Keep Football Agents Away From Flying Eagles Players – Peterside

Idah Peterside, a former goalkeeper for the Super Eagles, has given the Flying Eagles of Nigeria advice following their qualification for the quarterfinals of the ongoing Under 20 World Cup. He has suggested that the team handlers keep football agents at a distance from the team in order t

After the competition, the legacies of their performances will ensure that they advance in their individual careers, therefore he urged the flying eagles players to focus on the task at hand and play as a unit in order to achieve success in the competition.
"I will tell them to play because at this age they want to play, and they want to be seen. Playing is something they want to do. We don't need that kind of disengagement, but now we've heard that our central defender wants to be recruited by Bayern Munich, and our midfielder wants to be bought by Anderlecht; we don't have time for that.

"Keep agents away  from these players and tell them to play for your country, play as a team, and have a sense of teamwork first," Peterside said on Channels Television's Sunrise Daily on Friday. "Later, the lasting impact of your performance will show," Peterside added. "Play for your country, play as a team, and have team cohesion first."

Following its 2-0 victory over Argentina, which allowed it to advance to the quarterfinals on Wednesday and earn a spot in the competition's next round, the Nigerian squad will play South Korea on Sunday for the opportunity to advance to the semifinals.

Peterside cautioned the Flying Eagles not to underestimate the Koreans, pointing out that the senior national team, the Super Eagles, lost because they underestimated the Koreans during the World Cup in South Africa in 2010. The Flying Eagles should heed Peterside's advice and not underrate the Koreans.
"I was the media officer for the Super Eagles when they competed in South Africa 2010. We played all of our games, and I believe we needed a draw against the same Korean side to be able to progress to the next round. However, we were all saying 'we go finish them, we go kill them,' which affected us, and we did not win that game."

He also recalled how the team's prospects of advancing to the next round were shattered when several persons entered the locker room to offer financial promises to the players. He feared that the same thing might happen with the Flying Eagles team in Argentina.

"I know Adenuga at that time had come to the dressing room, he addressed the team and promised us one million dollars if we beat Korea which is what is going to happen to this team and I have always said, leave these players alone. "I know Adenuga at that time had come to the dressing room.

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"I just finished seeing a video in which a man went to visit the other players and bribed them with $3,000 to win. These young men need to be able to concentrate, so we must keep any financial support away from this group. It is something that I have always mentioned, but there is a practice that is common in Nigeria that may be rather aggravating.
"You bring officials into the dressing room, you bring NFF officials into the dressing room – it's disarray, allow the coach to speak to the players, impact the players with the knowledge he wants to impact them with because they have another 45 minutes to play, it has become a normal thing in our national teams, and it's killing us," Peterside added. "It has become a normal thing in our national teams, and it's killing us."

 

 


Jenny Young

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