By Toby Prince
Barely two games into Sunday Oliseh’s reign as coach of Nigeria damaging cracks have begun to emerge in the camp of the Super Eagles.
The boss has stripped returnee keeper and Lille shot-stopper, Vincent Enyeama, of his role as captain, and chosen Ahmed Musa as replacement.
Enyeama, who arrived the Eagles Belgium camp on Tuesday after burying his mum at the weekend, was welcomed with the news that he was no longer the team’s skipper and as such had to share a room with another player.
The decision didn’t go down well with Enyeama who is well known to be outspoken, as he confronted the coach to seek explanation for his decision.
According to sources in Belgium, a heated exchange then followed between the pair with the Lille keeper was initially ordered out of camp by the head coach before some other players and the Nigeria Football Federation intervened.
Oliseh has now declared CSKA Moscow forward, Musa, as his new captain, saying he intends to build a team for the future.
“There is no captain tussle – Nigeria (is) going forward. I need a player who is regular in the team and it is Ahmed Musa, who did a great job in Tanzania under very difficult circumstances,” he said in a radio interview Wednesday morning.
“He is the captain of the team, not somebody who is thinking of retirement.
“A captain has to lead by example. We are not here to build stars.
“If you don’t conform to what I am trying to do, we will be friends, but we will be friends from afar.”
He added: “There has been a new government and the President has picked new ministers. And that is what I have also done.”
Oliseh might have inherited an already existing feud between the NFF and the former Enyimba keeper, with the tactician used as tool to accomplish a scheme.
Qed.ng recalls that in June, Enyeama tore a query issued him by the NFF general secretary after his provocative comments about the safety of the northern Nigerian town of Kaduna to stage an AFCON qualifier against Chad.
A committee later moved to bring Enyeama back in line by recommending he be banned from the team and removed as captain.
“The federation is not happy with the Eagles captain. And I am sorry to say if the leadership decides to follow the recommendations of the disciplinary committee to the letter, then maybe Vincent Enyeama may have played his last game for the Super Eagles,” an NFF official said in June.
“Even if he is recalled to the national team, he may no longer wear the captain’s armband, because the NFF view his actions before and after the game against Chad as bad example for other players, also he didn’t show up for the disciplinary committee hearing.”
Musa, who made his debut for Nigeria against Madagascar in 2011, was captain for the first time in a friendly against South Africa in March before leading the country twice against Tanzania and Niger in September.
Already capped 101-times by Nigeria, Enyeama remains the oldest member of the current squad – closely followed by John Mikel Obi.
Nigeria play two international friendly matches against DR Congo and Cameroon on Thursday and Sunday respectively in Belgium.
