Former Super Eagles captain and coach, Sunday Oliseh was an outstanding defensive midfielder who played for Nigeria in two FIFA World Cups and can count the likes of Juventus, Ajax Amsterdam, and Borussia Dortmund among his former clubs.
Very much known for his down-to-earth approach to issues and non-conformity trance, Oliseh has singled out two countries that will fly high the flag of Africa, as the World Cup kicks off today in Qatar.
The Atlanta Olympic gold-winning Nigeria soccer team member shares his experience at the World Cup and his views on a range of other topics, including the role of the modern defensive midfielder, the importance of data for analysts and coaches, and what we should expect from the five African sides in action in Qatar, picks Senegal and Morocco as the African teams with solid teams.
SENEGAL & MOROCCO
Africa will also be represented by Cameroun, Ghana, and Tunisia.
Oliseh says the 2022 World Cup is a landmark tournament for African football because all five African qualifiers are coached by Africans. He sees Senegal and Morocco as particularly strong, and it will be interesting to see whether Morocco can produce their unique combination of European, African, and Middle Eastern playing styles when it really counts.
“Well, as my wife says, I’m a football freak. I watch most of the World Cup qualifiers and most major tournaments. I watched the African teams and I’m impressed with what I saw. I think we have two solid teams. The five of them are solid and this is the first all five teams are going to the World Cup with African handlers. It is a landmark. However, two of them on paper, and what I have seen stand out, and that is Senegal and Morocco. Now, which of the teams will be able to apply the Enhanced Football Intelligence (EFI) metrics, and a solid game plan and be able to move to the next level and surprise the world, I see Senegal. They are a solid team. Morocco is not playing African football again, they are not playing Arab football or European football, they are playing a mix of all, so it’s going to be interesting. So, let’s see if they can keep up the pressure.”
The current coach of SV 19 Staelens in Germany and FIFA technical expert for the 2022 World Cup, says from experience and memories, players go to the World with different levels of pressure.
Credit: thenationonlineng.net
