President Goodluck Jonathan
President Goodluck Jonathan has said that he would surprise the Super Eagles with a massive reward if they make a major impact at the 2014 World Cup.
Jonathan was not in Brazil but the Senate President David Mark, who led a Federal Government delegation to the Eagles camp in Campinas on Friday, conveyed the message to the players. The President did not give any hint as what the reward would be.
The President is confident that an African country could win the World Cup this time. Jonathan who said that the Eagles were well motivated is inspired by the mark the Nigerian Olympic team left at Atlanta ‘96 Olympic Games.
He said, “When we won the Olympics gold medal at Atlanta, we defeated countries like Argentina and Brazil, so I believe we can have a repeat performance at this year’s World Cup, with the talents available to us in this team.”
Mark also presented Eagles coach Stephen Keshi and team captain Joseph Yobo, with the national flags. All the 23 players also received the national flags, with all of them assuring that they will not let the nation down.
The delegation which had two governors, senators and four ministers then held a private session with the players and coaches during which issues concerning the team’s welfare were discussed. The players had threatened to boycott their Monday match against Iran if they do not get a share of the FIFA World Cup grant to the country.
Before the private meeting kicked off, Mark assured the players that the government was ready to do all it can within available resources to make the team comfortable in Brazil. He added that he would stay back in Brazil for all the team’s matches in the opening rounds.