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NPFL: Sports Minister wants home-based players to dominate Super Eagles
By Oyediji Oluwaseun Babatunde
Minister of Sports and Youth Development, Sunday Dare expressed his desire to see Super Eagles dominated once again by home-based players, notably from Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL).
The minister stated this at the PMB Scorecard, a platform organised by the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture for ministers to give an account of President Muhammadu Buhari’s achievements in different sectors from 2015-2023 to Nigerians which was held at the National Press Centre, Radio House, Abuja recently.
While reflecting on the Interim Management Committee (IMC) set up for the NPFL, Dare wants the core of the Super Eagles and assures there are concrete plans to take the Nigerian league to its glory days.
“We must return to the DNA of our football, the domestic league. The process is ongoing through the NFF and the IMC. The process may be slow but surely it will work out. IMC is working to reengineer and rebuild the domestic league,” the sports ministry boss disclosed.
“The Super Eagles must return to the glorious days when it was dominated by local league players like Segun Odegbami from IICC Shooting Stars of Ibadan and Christian Chukwu from Rangers International of Enugu. The Super Eagles will be rebuilt with players with young legs and youthful minds with the commitment to serve,” he said.
The Super Eagles in recent times have been dominated by foreign-based players with increasing calls to give the home-based players a chance in the national team after the team failed to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
The home-based Eagles on its part did not cover itself in glory as it failed to qualify for the 2020 and 2023 African Nation Championship (CHAN) after reaching the final in 2018.
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