We are not ready for Rio – Siasia

We are not ready for Rio – Siasia

In a chat with Goal, the Nigeria U23 coach has declared his team is not ready for the Olympics kicking off in less than two months after a less than stellar outing in Korea

Nigeria U23 coach Samson Siasia says his side is not yet ready for the 2016 Olympics which kicks off in less than two months following a disappointing campaign at the Suwon Invitational tournament in South Korea.

The Nigeria Olympic team lost 1-0 to the hosts and 6-2 to Denmark U21 before rounding up with a belated 3-1 comeback victory against Honduras on Monday.

In all, Siasia said he was taking away lots of lessons.

In an exclusive chat with Goal’s Samuel Ahmadu, the 48-year-old insists there is a lot to do and disclosed many changes will be made to his squad as they continue preparations for the men’s football event in Rio.

Goal: What message must Nigerians take from your Korea campaign ahead of Rio?

Samson Saisia: The Suwon invitational tournament campaign was preparatory to helping us get ready for a successful outing in Rio. We know from this four-nation tournament that we are not really ready yet. It was an eye opener for us to see the players we have and their ability to perform on a high level like the Olympics.

Goal: Do you have any disappointment and what lessons will you take from this pre-Olympics campaign?

SS: Why should I be disappointed when the real challenge has not started yet. It will help us to prepare better not to get disappointed in the future. We have a lot of lessons from these matches. I cannot share them with you but with my coaching crew as we leave Korea to continue our preparations. It will help us prepare better for the men’s football event in Rio.

Goal: What did you do differently to push your team to manage a comeback victory against Honduras and silence your critics?

SS: They should remember that this is preparation for the Olympics and they should not expect us to win all the matches when you are preparing to attend an important event like the Olympics. Then you won’t know where to make the changes and knowing the ability of each player that you have.  Nigerians are bad losers when they did not prepare even well. We abandoned the U23 team without financial support till now.

Goal: Any plans of fresh player changes for Rio considering your assessment of the players or you’re keeping faith with them?

SS: There will be changes of course to make the team a better one.

Goal: How are you coping with challenges, especially funding – remembering you faced a similar fate at the Caf U23 championship?

SS: I have said enough about poor financial support because nothing good will come out of all this talk. No need to talk about it anymore because it will never change we will continue to suffer till the Olympics are over.