Haruna Lukman Details How Super Eagles Players Attacked Each Other Spiritually in 2010
- Haruna Lukman has disclosed the problems that plagued the Super Eagles during the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa
- The attacking midfielder impressed coach Lars Lagerback in pre-tournament friendlies and made the squad for the Mundial
- Despite high expectations, internal problems affected the team’s performance, resulting in a preliminary round exit
Former Nigerian international Haruna Lukman has detailed the internal problems that affected the Super Eagles at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.
The attacking midfielder, who was at French club Monaco at the time, was one of the brightest prospects following his performance at the FIFA U17 World Cup in 2017.
Many had tipped him to become the new 'Jay Jay Okocha, and he was able to convince coach Lars Lagerback to include him in the team for the Mundial.
Source: Getty Images
Haruna was sensational during the pre-tournament activities when they played friendly matches against Saudi Arabia, Colombia and South Korea, per All Nigeria Soccer.
The Super Eagles headed to the competition with a star-studded squad including Peter Odemwingie, Yakubu Aiyegbeni, Vincent Enyeama, Obinna Nsofor, Kanu Nwankwo, Taye Taiwo and Obafemi Martins.
Despite this, they had an awful tournament at the global showpiece, crashing out in the group stage after managing just one point from three matches.
In a chat during an episode of The Abu Azeez Podcast, Haruna stated that there were internal problems within the team as some attacked each other spiritually.
He said:
"A lot happened — the team was not in good spirits. At that time, we actually fought each other. Spiritually, we were attacking one another, and physically, we were fighting.
"I can remember in London, before we flew to South Africa, there was an issue at the airport with some players. I won’t mention their names, but there was a conflict and they started arguing.
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"Some players were selfish; they didn’t want to pass the ball. They just wanted to take the glory alone.
"We lost two games, and even if we had won the match against South Korea, we still had only a slim chance to qualify. We could have advanced to the second round, but we drew that game and were knocked out."
The Super Eagles lost 1-0 to South American powerhouse Argentina in their opening game, before a 2-1 loss to Greece.
Source: Getty Images
They had a slim chance of progressing with a win in their final group game, but they failed to beat South Korea, as it ended 2-2, after Yakubu Aiyegbeni was presented with a seemingly unmissable opportunity just two metres from goal, but tucked just wide.
Yakubu speaks on infamous World Cup miss
Legit.ng earlier reported that former striker Yakubu Aiyegbeni has finally broken his silence on the infamous miss that has haunted Nigerian football fans for over a decade.
Speaking in an interview, Yakubu addressed the fallout from his shocking miss in Nigeria’s 2010 FIFA World Cup clash against South Korea, a moment still discussed and debated 15 years later.
Proofreading by Omoleye Omoruyi, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
