Eaglets in title defence mirage

Except with a rare change of fortune, the current Golden Eaglets stand no chance of defending their FIFA U-17 World Cup on home soil.

The Eaglets' coach, John Obuh, has been boasting about the ability of his team to retain the FIFA U-17 World Cup they won in South Korea two years ago, but has never been quite convincing, even to himself.

Obuh expressed his displeasure at the reaction of Nigerians after the draws for the competition pitched his boys against the trio of Germany, Argentina, and Honduras in Group A. Those fears demonstrated by soccer fans may not be totally unfounded after all.

The Nigeria Football Federation has been silent about the MRI scan-bone test to determine the true ages of the players in the Abuja camp of the national cadet side, but there were claims from camp sources that 16 players have failed the test.

Preparation

Besides the overage anxiety ravaging through the camp of the current team, the Eaglets' build-up has been far from impressive, the latest event being their withdrawal from the Central African Football Association invitational tournament in Sudan.

The Golden Eaglets are going into the World Cup with, perhaps, the poorest build-up expected from the hosts, having gone through three different coaching regimes in just under one year.

It is the first time Nigeria will be playing in the competition without featuring in the African Championship.

West African neighbours Benin Republic had eliminated the national U-17 side during the CAF qualifiers last year, a performance that led to the sack of coach Alphonsus Dike.

His successor, Henry Nwosu, lasted a few months before he was given the boot because the Nigeria Football Federation passed a vote of no confidence on him.

The federation appointed the current coach, John Obuh, as replacement for Nwosu but has yet to give the new Eaglets' boss the necessary support despite having only two months left to the competition's kick off in Abuja.

Contrast

The last Eaglets side that won the global cadet trophy had been together under the same technical crew for almost a year, and so it was easy for them to play as a unit.

Eight of the 21 players Nigeria paraded at the 2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup in South Korea were in the First Eleven coach Yemi Tella fielded in the team's opening qualifier against Rwanda at the Gateway Stadium in Ijebu Ode in 2006, his first competitive game while in-charge of the team.

They include captain Lukman Haruna, Rabiu Ibrahim, Macauley Chrisantus, Matthew Edile, King Osanga, Rafael Ademola, Azeez Balogun, and goalkeeper Laide Okanlawon.

Tella added 10 players and took the 18-man squad to a victorious outing at the CAF Championship in Togo while three others joined them to make the mandatory 21 for the world tourney.

The team played in a pre-tournament invitational tourney organised by hosts, Korea, and played against eight of the strongest youth sides across the globe including Brazil and USA, as well as one of their World Cup group opponents, Japan.

Assistant coach of the 2007 Eaglets, Garba Manu, described their preparation as perfect.

"We had a much better preparation and stability in the technical crew. You could see the boys showed good tactical and technical discipline during the tournament because we had been together for a long time,

"We were like a unit, from players to the coaches and our preparation helped us to excel against the likes of France, Argentina, Colombia, Germany, and Spain," Manu, a former youth international, said.

Verdict

Manu admits it would be a surprise if the Eaglets are crowned World Champions again after watching the Eaglets in a 0-0 friendly against Gombe United, his current club, last Monday in Bauchi.

"I honestly think it will be difficult for the team to retain the title. They still have a lot of areas to work on, especially their attack," he said.