Former Super Eagles forward, Peter Osaze Odemwingie has shared his perspective on the recent controversy between the Nigerian national team and their Libyan counterparts.
Nigeria’s contingent were left stranded at Al Abraq Airport for over 18 hours after their flight was unexpectedly diverted mid-air from Benghazi Airport.
The team had travelled to Libya for the return leg of their AFCON qualifiers.
Speaking to Brila.net, Odemwingie expressed his frustration with the incident, attributing it to poor management by individuals unfamiliar with the demands of football.
“It’s a shame to see things like this happen,” Odemwingie said. “It’s scary because diverting a plane to another airport is a whole different level.
“I don’t know who was behind this, but it clearly went too far.”
He added that while the Libyan team may have had grievances, their response was extreme.
“If they had complaints about how they were treated, they could have filed an official complaint. I’m sure Nigeria as a country, can get things right we can offer them apologies or explain things.
“You don’t without any explanation jump into extremes, that was extreme.”
Odemwingie suggested the ordeal would take a toll on players; physically and emotionally.
“The main people in football are always footballers and I’m sure this whole situation became toxic that even Libyan players are not happy. Some people might not even want to play football after this for their country.”
The former footballer turned golfer expressed disappointment that such issues arise when individuals without a deep understanding or passion for football are in charge.
“It’s very disappointing because if football people were in charge of such things will never happen. But, this a case of non-football people, without passion or love for the game, come in and upset things.”
