Ganiyu Ajide has urged Nigeria coach Sunday Oliseh to consider using Chelsea’s Mikel Obi in place of Ogenyi Onazi in the Super Eagles.
Lazio’s Onazi has been a regular in the holding midfielder position in the national team since he made his international debut against Liberia in 2012, with Mikel in the attacking midfield role.
The duo forged a good relationship in the midfield and helped Nigeria win the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations and a Brazil 2014 World Cup spot.
But the midfield pairing failed to reproduce the sparkling form that earned them plenty of praise with their explosive performances in the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations and in the Brazil 2014 World Cup qualifiers.
Former Eagles defender Ajide, who is a fan of the two players, believes Nigeria have yet to identify the right roles for Mikel and Onazi.
The former Julius Berger star, who was dropped from the on the eve of the national team’s departure for the 1998 World Cup in France, has suggested Mikel should be played in the holding role with Onazi playing as a deep-lying playmaker.
“(Chelsea’s caretaker manager) Guus Hiddink has proved that Mikel is a defensive midfielder, not an offensive midfielder,” the 1998 Carlsberg Cup winner told our correspondent on the telephone on Monday.
“We have been having troubles trying to solve the problems of identifying Mikel’s right position in the national team.
“Hiddink has solved the problem for us and we should play him in the defensive position where he’s comfortable.
“I think Oliseh should consider using Mikel in the sitting midfield role because he loves to defend – and he can play it better than Onazi.
“Onazi should be allowed to patrol the midfield because he has the energy to do so.”
The Lagos-based coach, who missed out on a place in the victorious 1996 Olympic Games squad, called for Oliseh to focus on the victorious Senegal 2015 Under-23 Africa Cup of Nations national team for players to strengthen the Eagles.
He also suggested that the players who distinguish themselves in the Rwanda 2016 African Nations Championship this month should be given a chance to fight their way into the senior national team.
The former Stationery Stores player also called for Oliseh to invite Senegal 2015 highest goalscorer Oghenekaro Etebo to the Eagles to enable the 20-year-old to stake a place in the team.
Ajide laments the country has found it difficult filling Austin Okocha’s shoes, urging Oliseh to consider Warri Wolves’ Etebo for a role in the attacking midfield.