The Chief Coach of Bright Stars Academy, Lagos State, Franklin Ibojo has stated that his football academy can help solve the age-grade problem bedeviling Nigeria’s national teams.
The Academy trains at the First Bank training ground, Satellite Town, Lagos State, under the tutelage of Ibojo and other seasoned football coaches.
The team sometimes host some other football teams in friendly matches to help hone football skills of the players, and Ibojo feels products from this academy can hold their own amongst their peers.
He added that unlike others, Bright Stars Academy harps on the academic strength of all the players before they are enrolled.
“It baffles anytime I read on the pages of newspapers or listen to news concerning Nigerian footballers about age falsification, when we have true age-grade players we can provide for Nigeria in the U-12, 13, 15 and 17. The scouts should come and see raw talents,” said the widely travelled soccer tactician.
To Ibojo, the Academy employs scientific method of training, which makes them far ahead of other footballers in other clubs. He lambasted the scouting department of the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF for not doing enough to unearth budding football talents.
“There are raw football talents waiting to be tapped but the NFF is not looking towards that end, very shameful,” said Ibojo.
