Chief
Coach of Nigeria’s U-23 Dream Team VI, Samson Siasia, has raised an
alarm over his team’s ordeals to access funds.
Siasia and his team have been training in Atlanta, USA ahead of Nigeria’s participation in the men’s football event of the Olympics.
Siasia and his team have been training in Atlanta, USA ahead of Nigeria’s participation in the men’s football event of the Olympics.
Though
the Olympics begins officially on 5 August, Nigeria will play their
first match of the Games against Japan on 4 August. Siasia said
Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) owes him and the coaches five
months’ salary arrears, while no allowance has been paid to the
team in the last five months. According to Siasia, the coaches and
the players have been training on ‘empty stomach’ in their
Atlanta camp, as he and the boys have been abandoned in the USA.
“We
are being owed backlog of allowances and wages in the last five
months. No single kobo has been pay to the team as at today. I’m
pleading with the NFF and the Ministry of Sports to pay us our
salaries. They should pay us before the Olympics. We are suffering.
No fund at all, even we have not received the tickets to go to Brazil
from here. The team have suffered too much. There is no
encouragement to show for our patriotism to the country,” lamented
Siasia.
While the coach insists he wasn’t given the country an
ultimatum or threatening to boycott the tournament, Siasia expressed
disappointment with the treatment meted to the Nigeria U-23 team.
“We
will not hold the country to ransom by threatening not to play our
matches, but the government has to come to our rescue. I know that by
the time the Olympics will be over, our monies will not be paid,”
he added.
Siasia won the silver medal of the football event of the
Beijing 2008 Olympic Games and the Olympic team are due to depart the
USA for Brazil on Friday.
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