Okocha bemoans Eagles’ lack of home ground

Former Super Eagles captain Austin Okocha says Nigeria have struggled to establish a true home ground since the national team stopped regularly playing in Lagos, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.

Okocha made the observation on the OBI One Podcast while reflecting on Nigeria’s failure to qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup after a 1-1 draw with Angola in Kano in the final qualifier.

The former Bolton midfielder questioned the decision to host such a crucial fixture in Kano, arguing that the conditions made the Nigerian players feel like visitors in their own country.

“How can we be playing last qualifying match if we know that if we win we will qualify? We took it to Kano, so imagine coming from London, from Chelsea, to go and play in Kano. The heat. So we were all like foreigners. So these are little things that they don’t understand,” Okocha said.

Nigeria briefly returned to Lagos in 2021, but the team’s previous competitive fixture in the city before then had been their 2002 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Zambia in January 2001, when the Eagles won 1-0.

Okocha believes the absence of a regular home venue has affected the team’s performances, insisting that players need to feel comfortable and supported by passionate home fans.

“Your players have to feel at home. They have to be comfortable. They must have a home ground. During our time, Lagos was our home ground. We were spitting fire here. But after Lagos, it’s like we don’t have a home.

“You go to Akwa Ibom, it’s like you’re playing away from home. True, because the crowd is not even that passionate there. These are the things that we need to fix.”

The Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo has served as the Eagles’ principal home venue in recent years and remains the only CAF/FIFA-accredited stadium currently available for regular national team matches in Nigeria.

Meanwhile, the National Stadium in Lagos, which hosted the 1973 African Games and the 1980 Africa Cup of Nations final, has remained largely moribund for years despite several attempts to revive the facility.

Okocha, who turned 53 earlier this month, won 73 caps for Nigeria between 1993 and 2006, scoring 14 goals. He featured at five Africa Cup of Nations tournaments and three FIFA World Cups.

One of his most memorable performances for Nigeria came in Lagos during the 2000 Africa Cup of Nations final against Cameroon, when he scored a spectacular long-range effort as the Eagles drew 2-2 with the Indomitable Lions before losing 4-3 on penalties.