Siasia Drops Bombshell on Alleged ₦91m Bribe to Include Ex-Chelsea Star Mikel in Olympics Squad
- John Obi Mikel and Samson Siasia’s ongoing media feud has taken another twist after the manager’s revelation
- Chelsea legend Mikel Obi claimed he paid for Nigeria's U23 team's flight to the Rio 2016 Olympics
- Siasia denied the claims and has dropped a bombshell on the incident between the two before Beijing 2008
Former Nigerian head coach Samson Siasia has dropped a bombshell that he rejected Mikel Obi’s agent’s bribe before the Beijing 2008 summer Olympics.
Mikel and Siasia are going at each other in a media war, which began after the former Chelsea midfielder claimed that he paid for Team Nigeria's flight to the 2016 Olympics in Brazil.
Source: Getty Images
The manager denied the claims, adding that they had a flight from one of Nigeria’s top airlines at that time, though the captain paid for the accommodation and feeding.
Siasia further claimed that maybe Mikel is currently broke and wants his money back, but he should not misrepresent the situation from how it played out.
Siasia accused Mikel’s agent of bribery
The former Super Eagles manager has taken their feud a step higher, by alleging that before the 2016 incident, they also had a situation before the 2008 Olympics.
Siasia coached the Dream Team at both tournaments, and he excluded Mikel Obi from the earlier tournament, claiming that his agent wanted to bribe him into the squad.
“Mikel's agent called that Mikel cannot come, and he wasn't a starter at Chelsea then; he was on the bench. I told him we only had one game against Ghana to play – please come and help us,” he told Elegbete TV.
“I said if he doesn't come, he won’t go anywhere. But Mikel refused to come, saying he was playing for Chelsea.”
Siasia added that Ghana had Asamoah Gyan because they needed the win, but Nigeria qualified instead despite Mikel refusing to honour his plea to help the team.
The manager added that the midfielder was expecting to be named in the squad for the Olympics, and his agent allegedly attempted to bribe him to include his client in the squad, but he refused.
Source: Getty Images
“Going to the Olympics, Mikel wants to come and play. His agent said he would give me €50,000 so Mikel should play,” he added.
“I said it’s not about €50,000. He didn’t play the qualifiers, so I will take out someone who qualified us and bring you in? It won’t happen. That’s why Mikel didn’t go.”
As noted by All Nigeria Soccer, Siasia did not name the agent, but UK-based Nigerian agent John Shittu was the player’s representative at that time.
The former Lyn Oslo midfielder was also a starter for Chelsea at that time, starting 21 out of the 29 Premier League games he played for the London club in the 2007/08 season.
A top Nigerian journalist who pleaded anonymity bashed Siasia’s desperate attempt to gain relevance after his five-year ban and believes it will land him in trouble.
“Siasia is trying so hard to bring himself back to relevance after his five-year ban, and soon enough, he will be in trouble,” he told Legit.ng.
“The allegation is ridiculous. How much was Mikel’s salary in 2008 for his agent to want to pay €50,000 for him to feature at the Olympics? What benefit would it have for his career?
“Mikel and his agent should seek legal means to clear their name from the incriminating allegation.”
Siasia accuses NFF of owing him
Legit.ng reported that Samson Siasia accused the NFF of unpaid salary and bonuses amounting to about $250,000 during his time as manager of different national teams.
Siasia has coached the Nigerian national teams at the U20, U23 and senior level, and he alleged that the federation still owes him up to his 2016 coaching engagement.
Proofreading by Omoleye Omoruyi, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
