Ifeanyi Udeze Slams Obafemi Martins Over Seyi Tinubu NFF President Suggestion
- Former Super Eagles star Ifeanyi Udeze publicly criticised Obafemi Martins for recommending Seyi Tinubu as the next NFF president
- Martins made the suggestion on a podcast as Nigerian football faces a leadership crisis following the NFF board's resignation
- Udeze countered by naming ex-international Seyi Olofinjana as a more suitable young candidate for the role
PAY ATTENTION: Mark Legit.ng as a preferred source, and our content will appear higher in your Google feed!
Former Nigeria international Ifeanyi Udeze has publicly criticised fellow ex-striker Obafemi Martins after Martins proposed President Bola Tinubu's son, Seyi Tinubu, as the next president of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF).
Nigerian football is going through a difficult transition following a series of damaging setbacks. The Super Falcons, Nigeria's women's national team, failed to qualify for the FIFA Women's World Cup for the first time since the tournament began in 1991.
Source: Getty Images
The crisis that followed led to the resignation of the NFF board headed by Ibrahim Gusau, and federation elections that had been pencilled in for September have since been postponed.
The National Sports Commission is expected to appoint a caretaker committee to manage affairs until a full electoral process can be completed, and several names have been floated in the media as potential candidates.
Udeze slams Obafemi Martins
Speaking on Brila FM, Udeze dismissed the idea outright, questioning what prompted Martins to put forward such a name.
"For me, it's a bad idea. I don't know what made Martins make such a statement, maybe because he's a friend to Seyi Tinubu, but as I said, I don't buy the idea," he said, via Complete Sport.
Martins had floated the suggestion during an appearance on the Obi One Podcast, where he put forward Seyi Tinubu as a candidate to lead the federation through its current period of uncertainty.
Rather than back Martins' choice, Udeze argued that if the intention was to bring younger leadership into Nigerian football, there were far more appropriate candidates already within the game.
"If Martins claims we need young people to come and run our football, there are other young people. I was thinking he would mention a young person like Seyi Olofinjana. I was surprised by his choice, so for me Obafemi Martins is on his own," Udeze said.
Udeze's remarks reflect the view that Martins' suggestion, while perhaps well-intentioned, carries little practical weight. With Seyi Tinubu having no known background in football administration, the prospect of him heading the NFF is widely considered unrealistic at this stage, and Udeze made clear he regards the proposal as a personal opinion rather than a serious nomination.
Tinubu orders reform in Nigerian football
Legit.ng previously reported that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu ordered a thorough reform in Nigerian football after the resignation of the NFF board.
The order came after the failure of the national teams, particularly the Super Eagles and Falcons, who failed to qualify for their respective World Cups.
Source: Legit.ng
