Daily Independent Online.
*
Tuesday, June 22, 2004.
Nigeria still Africa’s best, says
Zimbabwe FIFA ref
By Afolabi Gambari,
Special
Correspondent,
Harare
Despite last
Sunday’s sensational loss suffered by Super Eagles at the hands of
Angola’s Palancas Negras, the Nigerian side remains the best in Africa.
Retired FIFA-badged
Zimbabwean referee, Felix Tangwarima who made this observation in an exclusive
interview with Daily Independent in Harare on Monday while reacting to
Eagles’ 1-0 loss in Luanda, said the temporary set-back in the race to
Germany and Egypt in 2006 would not obliterate the fact that Nigeria
represented the greatest force in African football.
"In my
opinion, Nigeria is the only country in Africa that is capable of raising four
solid national teams and I think this really says a lot about the multitude of
genuine talents at her disposal," the 45 year-old former football arbiter
and currently chairman of Zimbabwe Referees Association stated.
"Notwithstanding that Nigeria conceded defeat to Angola, I believe they
would still rise to the occasion," he added.
According to
Tangwarima, Nigeria was renowned for rising from the ashes to the pinnacle of
glory in football. "This aspect of that country need not be further
stressed as the records are there to see," he enthused.
The respected
referee expressed regrets that the Nigerian authorities had taken this attitude
sometimes to what he called incredible dimension. "The authorities should
take cue from the revolution in African football that suggests gradual
demystification of former giants by imbibing the culture of not living anything
to chance," he warned.
"We have seen
what countries like Rwanda can do and I expect that otherwise potentially
strong countries like Angola should be taken more seriously," he further
warned.
Tangwarima would be
remembered by many Nigerians as the centre referee in the bad-tempered Nations
Cup 2000 quarter-final match between Super Eagles and Senegal’s Teranga
Lions where he gave Austin Okocha the marching orders as the Eagles trailed by
a Khalilou Fadiga’s fourth minute goal.
Although Nigeria
eventually posted a 2-1 victory over Senegal in a dramatic come-back that
represented a major highlight of the competition, the referee recalled that the
crucial decision had proved a watershed in his chequered career. "The
following day, I was the target of Nigerian fans who identified me at a
Supermarket and threatened me with invectives. I was lucky to come out of the
ugly scene unscathed, but it has left me with memories, especially that some
Nigerians love Okocha to a very fanatical level."
