Siasia threatens to sue Osaze Odemwingie

Former Super Eagles coach, Samson Siasia has threatened to sue former Nigeria international Osaze Odemwingie for claims Osaze made of his misdemeanour at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

Siasia has demanded evidence from his former player about what he has said happened in China or “shut his mouth.”

According to a report in a Nigerian daily, ThisDay, Odemwingie who was one of the three over-aged players in the Nigerian Under-23 Dream Team to the football event of the Beijing Games, had alleged as a guest on the Super Eagles Instagram Live Page during the week that he had issues with Siasia because he (Odemwingie) didn’t like his leadership style.

He also alleged that some of the issues that were being whispered in camp (about match-fixing) were responsible for the issues Siasia is challenging at the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) after he was banned for life by FIFA on allegations of match fixing.

But in his swift reaction to Odemwingie’s claims, Siasia demanded proof of the allegations from the former West Bromwich Albion player or risk receiving court summons from his lawyers.

“I am alive (to reply him). Osaze should better show me evidence of his allegations or shut up his mouth. The next letter will come from my lawyer, not me exchanging words with him,” Siasia told THISDAY Thursday.

Odemwingie had alleged during the Instagram chat: “During the Olympic Games in Beijing, there were some rumours among the players because I did not play the qualifiers that some dodgy things were going on, part of which he (Siasia) is being accused of at the moment.

“I did not know the validity of it but there were talks of match-fixing. For us the players we played out our hearts and deservedly got to the final which everyone saw,” Osaze said in that chat.

But a former Nigerian international that was part of the team in Beijing who spoke on condition of anonymity said that the beef between Odemwingie and Siasia was caused by the refusal of the coach to hand over the captain’s band to Odemwingie.

“I don’t want to be part of their wahala but what I can remember was that there was problem between Coach (Siasia) and Osaze because he was not made the captain of the team.

“Osaze wanted it as the most experienced player in camp but coach insisted on Late Isaac Promise as his captain. We all knew about this but it was not our business who was picked as Captain but to repeat the feat of the Nwankwo Kanu generation at Atlanta ’96.”