Speaking with Daily Trust in Ilorin, a Senior Coach of Kwara Football Academy, Paul Odey noted that the minister should not have been sacked now when the World Cup was fast approaching.
Odey who described his sack as purely political, noted that the President should have overlooked politics and enabled the former Minister complete his assignment in the sports ministry.
According to him, the incoming minister would be faced with the daunting challenge of acclimatizing himself in the ministry and this may negatively affect Nigeria’s World Cup performance in Brazil.
“A lot of people are going to miss him because of his youthful approach towards sports”, he said, noting that the former Minister “really tried” by not only winning the CAF Nation’s Cup and U-17 World Cup but also qualifying the country to the next World Cup in Brazil.
He however noted that his sack was destined by God, saying, “It is like a case of soldiers go, soldiers come, the barrack remains the same”.
“The challenge would be much now because of problem of continuity. I would have suggested that the Minister should take us to the World Cup because the new minister has to start afresh, trying to find his feet in the ministry and all that”, he said.