Garba Lawal furious over Rohr’s ‘negative comments’ on local players
Aformer international, Garba Lawal has condemned in strong terms the recent comment by the Technical Adviser of the Super Eagles Gernot Rohr that there are no good players in the Nigeria Professional Football League.
The Franco-German who coach was explaining his preference for foreign based players said the local league is not of standard.
In his reaction, Lawal said the coach should show more respect to the home based players and the local league.
According to him, instead of castigating the players and the domestic league, Rohr should come out clearly that he prefers to go with foreign based players for their exposure.
“There is no way a coach will tell me there is no good player in the local league. I agree with you, if you don’t like the players, just say so, don’t us give flimsy excuses. He shouldn’t make negative comments.
“You picked Ikechukwu Ezenwa from the local league even as he is not the number one goalkeeper in Enyimba. He does not keep regularly. What of the other Enyimba players? Are they not human beings?.
“If you decide not to pick local players, don’t castigate them. Just say you prefer foreign based players to local players. question you. “Although teenager, a I Nobody I will was still remember how Clemence Westerhof took local players like Ayo Ogunlana, Moses Kpakor, Isaac Semitoje, Tajudeen Oyekanmi, Uche Okechukwu and other local players to the 1990 AFCON in Algiers and they did very well,” he said.
Lawal therefore expressed disappointment in Rohr’s employers and Nigerian coaches who have remained silent even as the foreign coach continues to ‘rubbish’ local players and the league.
He said someone has to speak out in defence of the players before they are psychologically destroyed by the expatriate coach.
“There is no way you will employ a coach and he will be insulting our players day by day, yet we keep quiet as if we are fools.
“How can one white man come and rubbish our football. He is insulting the NFF and League Management Company, LMC, because they are the league.
“Did he win the World Cup with the German national team?. Did he win the Champions League with Bayern Munichen?. He should just say he prefers foreign based players to local players,” he stated.