The Great Debate: Odemwingie vs. Musa Goal Nigeria present another debate between two of our writers; one advocating the cause of Peter Odemwingie, the other, Ahmed Musa. DEBATE Following his brace against West Ham United over the weekend, calls for Peter Odemwingie to return to the national side will increase like never before. The veteran’s excellent form threatens to bring another divisive issue before Stephen Keshi ahead of the World Cup. In this feature, two of Goal Nigeria’s finest debate whether a return for the former West Bromwich Albion forward would represent a wise move for the Big Boss. Odemwingie Represents Regression As soon as Peter Osaze Odemwingie dispatched his brace at the weekend against West Ham, we all knew what was coming next. Many strikers have been known to have an impeccable sense of timing. On this evidence, you cannot say Odemwingie is left out. His goals came on the back of a week which had seen the legendary Jay-Jay Okocha add his voice to the growing lobby of ex- players who seem to assume their opinion on the composition of the Super Eagles’ World Cup squad is needful. It was an emphatic statement. Already, the pro-Odemwingie camp have installed him as a shoo-in for the right-sided attacking position, ahead of erstwhile occupant Ahmed Musa. This is rather short-sighted and reactionary. While there is merit, and it is clear to see that Odemwingie is in reasonably good form, let us not forget under what circumstances he left the national team setup almost two years ago. A victim of Keshi’s cull of disgruntled elements and megalomaniacs in 2012, his ‘sour grapes’ comments after the Super Eagles’ victory at the Africa Cup of Nations in 2013 were petulant and immature. There is some indication that he and the Big Boss have indeed mended fences, but does that then mean that he is to be handed the key to the city? Talking pure stats, Odemwingie’s goals- to-game ratio this season is 0.208, only slightly behind Musa’s 0.212, but significantly the CSKA Moscow man has chalked up four times as many assists in only nine more appearances. Then again, Stephen Keshi has made it a point to emphasise that he is building for the future. The inclusion of Odemwingie would totally go against the ethos of hunger, vigour and freshness that Keshi has made a point of espousing since he took over the team’s affairs. Ahmed Musa’s game has its flaws, but he puts it all on the line when he wears the shirt. Frankly, none of his kinks will be ironed out by asking him to take a backseat to a returning ‘prodigal son’.
Posted on: Thu, 20 Mar 2014 18:24:25 +0000
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