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Under 23 Olympics Bronze winning coach Samson Siasia has revealed
that he's bewildered by the 'standoff' between him and Sports Minister
Barr. Solomon Dalung.
Siasia's social media
standoff with the minister started after the coach complained of the
poor treatment and financial incentives he and his players received
prior to the Olympics in Rio, Brazil, which then prompted the minister
to say he wasn't aware of where the team was pre-Rio and even said he
will discipline the U-23 national football team coach, Samson Siasia and
every other team official who took to the media to vent his or her
frustration, saying they were unethical.
Siasia has now said he doesn't know the offense he committed to the minister .
“As we speak, I don’t know what I have done to offend the Minister. The whole thing is surprising”, Siasia said while in Johannesburg Airport in quotes gotten by Vanguard.
“It’s funny. When he came, he shook hands with us and after shaking the players, he asked where is the coach?. Everybody started laughing. We shook hands again and hugged” Siasia said.
“The environment before the Games was not good but we resolved to weather the storm. The players gave their best. Without necessarily singling out players, Mikel was outstanding. He not only played well, he also motivated the squad with his leadership qualities. Also, Injury did not allow us to use some other good players. Anyway, we’re grateful to win something for Nigerians who showed massive support to us”.