Tijani Babangida claims Clemens Westerhof wanted to drop Michael Emenalo to make room for him at the 1994 World Cup. The NFF refused, and the former winger followed the tournament without being registered, according to his testimony to ThisDay.
The story goes back more than thirty years, but Tijani Babangida reveals a little-known episode. In an interview with ThisDay, the former Super Eagles and Ajax Amsterdam winger says that Clemens Westerhof, then Nigeria coach, considered dropping defender Michael Emenalo to make room for him in the 1994 World Cup squad in the United States.
The proposal did not get past the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF). Unnamed officials rejected the idea, Babangida reports. As a result, the player was not officially registered for the competition, but he stayed with the delegation throughout the tournament.
“They said no”
According to Babangida’s account, Westerhof found himself caught between the need to include a player who arrived at the last moment and the established hierarchy in his position. “Clemens Westerhof had no choice, I arrived at the last moment and the Nigerians felt I should go to the World Cup,” the former international told ThisDay.
The coach then explored another option. “He had to drop Victor Ikpeba and for him it was not fair to do so, but he told them he could drop Emenalo because he was a defender. They said no, that I was a striker,” Babangida continues. Finidi George and Victor Ikpeba were already ahead of him in Westerhof’s hierarchy for the right-wing position.
The NFF’s refusal thus left Babangida out of the official squad for the American World Cup. “That’s why I was not registered for the 1994 World Cup, but I followed the team to the World Cup. I was with them, I trained and slept with them. We did everything together except go on the pitch,” he says.
Emenalo, a choice that ultimately paid off
The presence of Michael Emenalo, a former international defender who played for RWD Molenbeek, was not a luxury. He provided cover for Benedict Iroha, the former international left-back who was first choice in that position. The course of the tournament vindicated those who kept him in the squad.
Iroha suffered a groin injury during Nigeria’s historic 3-0 victory over Bulgaria and missed the rest of the tournament. Keeping Emenalo then proved justified: he took over at left-back.
Four years later, redemption
Babangida did not play a single minute of the 1994 World Cup, as he was not registered. Four years later, he played all four of Nigeria’s matches at the 1998 World Cup in France.
Better still, he scored against Denmark in the round of 16.