Ex-Nigeria coach calls for respect for the African Nations Cup
Former Nigeria coach Gernot Rohr has called for more respect for the Africa Cup of Nations.
The next edition of the tournament, which was postponed for a year due to the repercussions of the new Corona virus, will start next Sunday in Cameroon, and the coronavirus crisis has led to more complaints than usual from European clubs, which witnessed the travel of a large group of its basic elements to participate in the tournament, despite its suffering from The loss of many of its players recently due to the epidemic.
"The timing of the Africa Cup of Nations in the middle of the season is certainly a factor, but you have to accept that there are international competitions that don't necessarily take place in June," Rohr said on Thursday.
"The Africa Cup of Nations deserves more respect. In terms of sporting value and popularity in Africa, the tournament is one of the highlights of international football for me," Rohr added.
The tournament, which will last until February 6, was initially scheduled to be held last summer, but it was brought forward to January last year due to the hot weather in Cameroon, before it was postponed for a year due to the epidemic.
For example, the Liverpool team is missing 3 of its most prominent stars, led by the Egyptian international star Mohamed Salah, the current top scorer in the English Premier League, but Rohr believes that it is time for the Europeans to show some interest in the championship.
"For Europe, Africa is sometimes a bit far away," Rohr emphasized.
Rohr, 68, has led the Nigerian national team since August 2016, before splitting from the team last month.
It is noteworthy that the Nigeria team, which won the title in 1980, 1994 and 2013, ranked third under the leadership of Rohr in the last edition of the African Nations held in Egypt in 2019, in which the Algerian team won its second title in its history.
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