Former Arsenal striker and Nigeria legend Kanu isn’t one of those ex footballers who spends his whole time on TV as a pundit, or doing his best to force his way into the spotlight, so when he has something to say it’s probably worth listening to.
As a player who picked up a lot of caps and goals for his country, his opinion is greatly respected, and it’s interesting to read his take on the Tammy Abraham / Fikayo Tomori situation as outlined here in quotes carried by AFP.
Abraham and Tomori yesterday both accepted callups from Gareth Southgate to join the England squad for the upcoming international break. Should they step on the pitch, they will be locked in as England players for life.
They are both still eligible for Nigeria, and it had been hoped by many in that country that they would choose to play for their ancestral country, but it hasn’t worked out that way. Kanu’s words will cheer them up however, as he insists the team will be just fine without them, and they should focus on players who don’t hesitate to play for their country.
“That’s football and I think we have enough quality and we can win matches without them,” Kanu is quoted as saying.
“We can’t continue to beg one player to play for us. Nigeria cannot beg, players have to beg Nigeria.”
He’s right. The West African country will continue to produce great players, they shouldn’t worry about the ones that get away.
