Bosso blames El-Kanemi’s woes on players’ exodus

El-Kanemi FC of Maiduguri Coach Ladan Bosso on Wednesday attributed his team’s poor performance in the 2015/2016 Nigerian Premier Football League (NPFL) to the exodus of his players.

He also blamed the team’s loss to Lagos-based MFM FC in Match Day 6 last Sunday on fatigue arising from the long distance journey to Lagos to honour the game.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Desert Warriors were defeated 3-1 on Sunday in Lagos by MFM in the fixture played at the Agege Stadium.

The outcome of the match has left El-Kanemi, founded in 1986, in the relegation zone after series of unconvincing results since the start to the season on Feb. 21.

The team was also defeated by Lobi Stars of Markurdi 3-0 in their Match Day 3 encounter and in Match Day 4 against Enyimba, last season’s champions; they had a positive game securing a 3-0 win.

The club so far, has won only one game, drew one, lost three and currently occupies the 17th position on the league table just a point above the drop zone.

However, Bosso defended his team saying that they needed time to blend because they are a new crop of players.

The former Abia Warriors coach took over from Kelechi Emeteole and guided the team to 13th position last season with 49 points, thereby helping the Maiduguri side to stay in the elite league.

Bosso told NAN that his present task was to ensure El-Kanemi’s safety in the elite division in spite of his challenges with the new players.

"We will go back to the drawing board, look at the problems technically and administratively and correct them the next time we play; but for me, the officiating so far is good.

"Technically, we know what our problems are today. We lost because of fatigue which is as a result of the long distance travelling to Lagos; we were fagged out.

"The plan for us was to come to Lagos by flight, but on getting to the airport, we are told that nine tickets were available; so, we are leftwith two options.

"I have to decide if some players should go by flight and others by road which I considered unfair, so, we decided that all have to go by road,’’ he said of the Match Day 6 game.

Bosso told NAN that the team arrived late in Lagos, with little time to prepare for the game against MFM team, adding that they were hardnuts to crack.

"The team arrived in Lagos by road around 9 p.m. on Friday; and I think we just had to work on that; maybe to be arriving either Wednesday or Thursday.

"The first three matches we lost, for me, were an expected end in the premier league because most of the players that prosecuted the last league season were not around.

"About 15 of the players were the ones I met in the camp and it would have been okay, but five of these players still left, while six were injured.

"I am left with only four players to work with, while others are new, so, we are practicing blending for now,’’ he said.

On the complaints that most of his players are not fit and overweight, Bosso rose to their defence, saying that they were fit.

"My players did not have fitness issues, they have been training hard, especially Musa who is not an overweight player because he has been doing well in training.

"The only problem I see with them is fatigue which is a general problem with teams. The only area we need to fortify is the attack where we lose balls.

"We loose balls easily in the attack and if you are losing balls in the attack, the midfielders may lose possession of the ball too.

"We have seen it all today and I, being a coach and a technical person, know what to do. We have itemised those areas we need to work on,’’ he told NAN.

Bosso said that the league was still young to complain about losing matches, adding that there may be some surprises in the course of theseason.

"As for me, the league is still open and you can never be too sure who will do what at a given time; you can expect to see surprises.

"I am happy with what I see in Lagos, I’m happy with the crowd and their support. It has been long since I came here.

"When I heard about Agege Stadium, I didn’t know it’s like this; I am happy about the developments in football in Nigeria.