Mikel Obi Criticizes Footballers Who See Super Eagles Of Nigeria As An Option

Nigerian and Chelsea legend, Mikel Obi has expressed his unhappiness over the trend of some players opting for European national teams in their prime and only turning to African countries when unsuccessful in breaking into their chosen European national teams.

During his recent ObiOne Podcast episode, Mikel Obi urged footballers of African descent to take pride in representing their country of origin and avoid the practice of turning to African countries as a second option later in their careers.

He emphasized the importance of making a firm decision regarding national team representation and sticking to it, rather than switching allegiance when other options don’t work out.

He said, “They want to play for England, France, whatever it is, and then they wait. When they get to 25 or 26 and they don’t get a call up from England, then they call Nigeria. We shouldn’t be treated as a second option. You should be proud of your African roots. You should be proud to represent your African country.

“If you decide you want to play for England, stick to it. Sit and wait, but don’t wait till 29 or 30, you have passed your best, then you are like, ‘Oh Nigeria FA, I’m ready to play for you now’. No, f…k off, mate.”

Note that most Nigerian and African footballers representing European national teams have been born, raised, and developed their careers in those foreign countries.

On the other hand, some have experienced spells with the youth levels of the European teams before eventually opting to represent their African roots at the senior level. Notable examples include Alex Iwobi, Ola Aina, Victor Moses, Leon Balogun, and Ademola Lookman, who all initially played for England at youth levels before later choosing to play for Nigeria.