As Nigerian football fans wait and wonder, if coach Stephen Keshi will recall Peter Osaze Odemwingie to the Super Eagles for the 2014 World Cup, the Stoke City striker has said that he was not an unruly player as he as been portrayed in the media.
He argued that he was only demanding to be respected and that has nothing to do with his performance on the field of play.
Osaze Odemwingie
“When people talk about discipline, in reality in football, discipline is what you do on the pitch. Everything else – what you do in the media – is all about people’s opinions. We are all different… there are no angels in the game. As stubborn as many people say players like Zlatan [Ibrahimovic] or Mario [Balotelli] are, they are big players. There are things about Messi that people don’t know.
“The discipline in sport is what you do on the pitch. An undisciplined player is one who comes to training late all the time, gets red cards all the time. All the things off the pitch are about your personality, and you can’t please everyone. Things don’t have to be taken personally. There are a lot of boring athletes that never say anything,” said the player in an interview with four-four-two magazine.
He submitted that he has made up with coach Keshi and was looking forward to a call up.
“It’s fine. We’ve been speaking. We’re on good terms now. Last time I spoke with him was when he arrived in Nigeria. I heard he landed and I read your [FFT] piece with him. I called him and wished him all the best, because it will not be an easy period for him since he has raised the bar high and our fans have tasted success.
