The FIFA Confederations Cup is kicking off and our Super Eagles are in the thick of it, courtesy of the 2013 African Nations Cup they won. Eagles are such a lucky side as I believe the winners of the 2012 edition should have represented Africa but I leave that for another day.
Now back to the Eagles. For a long period we really had no team we could count upon. After the great period of 1990 – 1998, we began to struggle and only qualified for tournaments colourlessly. We were mere participants in the World Cups and Africa Nations Cup we featured in after this great period. But I sincerely think we have improved above the lowly times that we should not continue to look at the Eagles as grasshoppers. It's time to give them benefit of the doubt.
I was really amazed as Nigerians rated the Eagles before they played Kenya in Nairobi last week. The majority of previews I read and those I followed on radio and television made Eagles look like the underdogs. I remember reading headlines, 'No retreat no surrender for Eagles' like they were going to face the Germans in Nairobi. I could hear people vowing that the Eagles would overcome Nairobi. No matter how poorly the Eagles may have been in the best few years I don't think they deserved to be measured so lowly against the Harambee Stars.
This is not to say that the Kenyans are not good; I am not deriding their footballing abilities. But my concern is that we are rather looking down at reigning African champions like they are less than WAFU champions. It was only after the Eagles won that I heard it was by luck; I didn't hear that in 2012 when the Zambians won the same cup. I have lashed the Eagles on this page in the past but when they were set to face Cote d'Ivoire I gave them the votes. This was because I truly believed they had worked hard enough to deserve that level of respect. I also believe now that we all give them some encouragement since we don't really have cause to doubt them so much now.
I was in Calabar when the Kenyans visited for the first game and so I saw all that happened at close range. I know that their display and the result of that game cast a lot of doubts on the Eagles but was it really enough to have made the Eagles now look like the underdogs before the Kenyans. Teams suffer off days when they become too confident and relaxed over their opponents. That was partly what happened with Nigeria in Calabar. And it has not been with just the Kenyans. We have become frightened of any team Nigeria is facing irrespective of their current standing in the world football. Perhaps the FIFA world rankings have taken the wrong toll on our calculations. So many teams jump high on the table because they are very active just as others go down when they are not so active and yet many people take the monthly release like it is stating the real forms of the teams. The Brazilians have slipped down the ladder because they are the next hosts and not playing the qualifiers but only a drunken coach will wave them off with his left hand when they step out against his team.
The days are gone when big teams overrun their opponents and this applies to every continent of the world. It is the same applying to us in Africa but it is cannot make underrate the Eagles when they face countries who have never won the African cup or been to the World Cup. I'm sure that the anxiety over the game against Namibia reduced just because the Eagles defeated Kenya in Nairobi. I was practically on this piece when Namibia scored on Wednesday but it didn't change in my view.
I sincerely believe that the Confederations Cup offers the best opportunity to evaluate this team and know wether we can truly call them African Champions.
As they begin the campaign in the Confederations Cup, the best way to enjoy the competition is just to believe in them. They are not expected to win the cup but if they do it becomes a great bonus. It is when you cast your expectations far above where the Eagles can soar that you get heart problems. It is only then that you panic when they are stepping out against Tahiti.
For me I have learnt to weigh against every opponent one after the other.
