Mikel among world’s best – Dosu Dec 20, 2014 Sports 0 Joseph Dosu has branded criticism being aimed at Chelsea midfielder Mikel Obi by some Nigerian fans as “unfair”. The former Nigeria goalkeeper, who hailed the player as a big talent, insists the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations winner is “one of the best players in the world today”. Mikel, who has been forced to play a bit-part role at Stamford Bridge this season as Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho prefers in-form Nemanja Matic in the defensive midfield position, was singled out for the most intense criticism following Nigeria’s inability to qualify for next month’s Africa Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea. A section of the local media questioned the 27-year-old’s commitment to the Super Eagles and called for his exit from the team. The 2005 FIFA Under-20 World Cup silver medallist, who has started two league games for the Blues in the 16-week-old Premier League season, scored his first UEFA Champions goal as Chelsea ended the elite tournament group stages with a 3-1 defeat of Sporting Lisbon last week. Dosu said the player shouldn’t be judged based on his limited playing opportunities at the London club. “It’s a shame that some Nigerians criticise Mikel in the media, and even use abusive language, in spite of what he has done for the country.” the Atlanta ’96 Olympic Games gold medallist told our correspondent on the telephone during the week. “He has won the UEFA Champions League (in 2011), Europa League (2013), Premier League, FA Cup as well as the Africa Cup of Nations. “I believe some of the people criticising the player just don’t like his face. It’s unfortunate. “If Mikel is a bad player, he won’t be at Chelsea today. He has been retained at the club by Mourinho because he knows what the player can offer. “A big club like Chelsea wouldn’t have extended his contract (for five years in 2012) if he’s not good. “Every player at Chelsea plays for his national team and there is stiff competition for starting roles in the team. “Sitting on the bench at Chelsea means he’s a quality player. The manager can’t play every player in the team at the same time. If Mourinho prefers another player to Mikel for a particular match, he must have his reason. “It doesn’t mean Mikel is not good enough to start games for the team. “I won’t be bottered by the criticism if Mikel is sitting on the bench at clubs such as Sunderland, Stoke and Hull City. “Mikel deserves commendation for making the country proud. We should be proud to have a Nigerian in a big club like Chelsea. He’s the only Nigerian playing for a big club and he deserves respect.” The former Julius Berger custodian said Mikel shouldn’t be blamed for the Eagles’ failure to qualify for Equatorial Guinea 2015. Instead, the ex-Italy-based keeper blamed the team for “leaving it too late”. He said, “We would have qualified for the tournament if we had won our first qualifiers against Congo and South Africa. It’s unfortunate we lost 3-2 to Congo at home and 1-0 to Sudan (in Kharthoum). “We had the opportunity to make it (in the last qualifier in Uyo) but the South Africans played as if their lives depended on the game. “They knew we could win the tournament, hence they did everything to stop us from going to Equatorial Guinea. We were lucky to come out of the game with a 2-2 draw. We left too late, and we should work hard to qualify for the next Africa Cup of Nations.” Dosu added, “Mikel played his heart out during the qualifiers and proved he’s a great player. “I think some of the people criticising him want him to play the way he played when he faced Lionel Messi at the Holland 2005 Under-20 World Cup. It’s not possible because many things have changed in football.” He said the country would find it difficult to produce quality players if the problems of the domestic league are not addressed.
Posted on: Sat, 20 Dec 2014 22:00:47 +0000