News -- Eagles must qualify for Germany 2006

Arsenal star Nwankwo Kanu has pledged his readiness to ensure that the Super Eagles qualify for the next World Cup even as he also expressed his hurt at the failure of the U-23 side to qualify for this summer's Athens Olympic Games.

The former junior international, who spoke exclusively to THISDAYSports at his push home in Beech Hill, Cockfosters, London, also down played his failure to score in three Nations Cup tournaments, insisting 'the goal(s) will still come.'

Wearing yellow casuals and slippers, the tallest member of the Premiership leaders at 6'6'', told us that although the London outfit paid his salary he first loyalty was to his fatherland.

"I must tell you its not easy taking time off from club duties to play for the Eagles because they (the club) will always try to put pressure on you not to go on the ground that they need your services. And if you remember that they are the ones paying your wages you'll understand their reluctance to let players go.

"But no matter the pressures, my father land is still my father land and I am ready to offer my services to the Eagles whenever I'm called to do so. I only hope my club will understand."

Speaking against the backdrop of another 'club versus country row' in view of the Eagles loaded programme of World Cup and Nations Cup qualifiers which kick off in June, the player fondly called 'Pappy', pledged that he would be available for the national team because he wants to be at both Germany 2006 and the Nations Cup also taking place the same year.

"I know that the Eagles have a loaded programme this year but I want to reassure everyone that so long as I'm invited I will make my self available. We must be at both the Nations Cup and World Cup."

Kanu, who called on soccer authorities not to take the campaign lightly since the same competition would determine Nigeria's fate at both Germany 2006 and the Nations Cup taking place in Egypt, also disclosed that all the nation's Premiership-based players have resolved to do all they can to make it possible for the Eagles to qualify for both tournaments.

"We (Premiership players) are determined to help Nigeria qualify for both tournaments because we know how important it is to the fans for the Eagles to be at the these events."

Six senior members of the national team that were at Tunisia 2004 ply their trade in the Premiership and they include skipper Jay Jay Okocha, his deputy Kanu, Isaac Okoronkwo, who is yet to play a competitive game for his team, Joseph Yobo, Celestine Babayaro and Yakubu Aiyegbeni. Defender George Abbey also plays in Britain but for struggling Division Three side Macclesfield United.

On his failure to break his Nations Cup goal scoring duck where after three tournaments dating back to Ghana/Nigeria 2002, Kanu insisted that he had not allowed it get to him because he was he was satisfied with his all round performance with the Eagles and was certain that he would end the drought one of these days.

"No I don't allow it to bother me. Why should I? If I don't score but create chances for others and we go on to win I've contributed positively. Take Tunisia for instance. I didn't score but I had a hand in most of the goals we scored either from getting penalties or assists. In the end what really matters is not how many goals an individual player scores but in the end does the team win?

"Which one is better - Kanu scoring and the Eagles crashing out in the first round? Of course what is more important is how well the team fares. Football is a team sport."

He did, however, acknowledge what many (including this reporter) believed that he passed up a good scoring opportunity to settle for a penalty in the semi-final game against Tunisia, which Okocha converted to give the Eagles an early lead.

"It's true that I could have tried to score but after rounding the last defender I was slightly off balance and felt that I was no longer in a good position to score so I decided to go for the next best thing which was the penalty. I knew he would foul me. So rather than taking a shot and missing I got the penalty which we scored but unfortunately still ended up losing the match."

He reiterated Okocha's assertion that they had hoped to win the Nations Cup but their best efforts was not just good enough.

However, one thing that has hurt the Super Eagles' assistant skipper is the failure of the Dream Team III to make it to the Olympics after crashing 2-0 in the final qualifier in Tunis last weekend because he had fond memories of the competition.

"It's very painful that we won't be at the Olympics for obvious reasons. It was at the same competition that we were able to beat world soccer powers like Brazil and Argentina in winning the event at Atlanta. And because of this the whole world expects that we should be qualifying regularly for the Olympics."

He, however, did acknowledge that it was no longer as easy as that because there was no longer any 'small country' in football any more.

"In football now one can no longer under rate any country because every one wants to beat a so called big soccer power like Nigeria, Cameroon and so on. So the onus is on us to prepare properly in order to make sure that such things don't happen to us."

Kanu was the skipper of the original Dream Team which stunned the world at the Olympics eight years ago in Atlanta where they over came such soccer power houses like Argentina and Brazil to win the gold medal.

In truth the latest Dream Team is a pale shadow of the team that Kanu captained to glory.