Former Nigeria football team Super Eagles captain Sunday Oliseh has asked African governments to respect football federations and associations in order to promote the sport in their respective countries.
He assured that Africa does not have abundant financial resources to facilitate the growth of footballing talent but have the capacity in creativity in the sport and the best way is to create talent by harnessing talents of young and upcoming talented players.
Addressing journalists in Nairobi, the legendary player said respective governments and football association’s should invest in football academies to churn talent.
“Africa has abundant talent which can be nurtured, developed and exported to big European leagues. I like talent creation, the way German football was successful where clubs and federation invest in young talent through their academies,” he said adding that after the 2002 World Cup, Germans went to the drawing board and resolved to invest in youth talent. The results were enormous as Germany is now dominating the world.
Oliseh said the fruits of developing young talent were felt with Germany winning the 2014 Fifa World Cup in Brazil whose players were an average of 23 years.
Oliseh was addressing the press in Nairobi after his arrival of a three day legends tour in Kenya.
DFL Sports enterprises which manages the Bundesliga Sales Operations manager Henning Brinkmann said they will link Kenya with German clubs playing in the German Bundesliga.
He said with partnership with StarTimes it will be possible to have Kenyan football benefit from the Bundesliga.
Brinkmann said on returning to Germany he will try and link Kenya with German clubs for partnerships and exchange programs.
The manager Said the partnership is bound to open doors by exposing Kenyan players with a possibility of being scouted to play in German leagues.
He said Bundesliga sides Hoffenheim and Wolfsburg have began partnering with countries in Africa.
“Technical staff from Wolfsburg were in South Africa while those from Hoffenheim visited Namibia a few days ago for the programs,” he said.
Oliseh reminisced with nostalgia fond memories of when Kenya held Nigeria to a 1-1 draw in a World Cup qualifier.
He lauded the support given to Kenya by the then president Daniel Arap Moi during the 1998 France World Cup qualifiers against Nigeria in Nairobi in 1997.
“The president marshaled Kenyans to rally behind Kenya that we were given a run for for their money before scraping with a draw,” he reminisced.