Inter Lagos’ struggle to find their footing in the Euromatch-Nigeria Premier Football League has taken another difficult turn, with head coach Olusanjo Olutayo expressing his frustration with his players after Sunday’s draw against Ranchers Bees.
The Lagos club had an opportunity to secure only their second league victory of the campaign when they welcomed fellow promoted side Ranchers Bees to the Mobolaji Johnson Arena, but another failure to hold on to a lead left them with just a point.
The result extended their disappointing run near the foot of the table, although the reaction from their manager after the final whistle has arguably attracted even more attention than the outcome itself.
Olutayo questioned the mentality and technical understanding of some members of his squad, suggesting that certain players were struggling to execute the instructions given to them during training.
His choice of words has since generated criticism among football fans, with some questioning whether such public criticism is appropriate when addressing professional footballers.
Inter Lagos surrender early advantage
The encounter brought together two promoted teams battling to establish themselves in the top flight, with both arriving under pressure after difficult starts to the season.
Inter Lagos made an encouraging start and took the lead in the ninth minute through a penalty converted by Qoyum.
However, the hosts could not turn that advantage into a much needed victory, as Ranchers Bees found an equaliser in the 60th minute to secure a share of the points.
Olutayo who was appointed interim head coach following Shakiru Giwa’s departure in October, the result represented another setback in his attempt to revive Inter Lagos’ campaign.
The coach had inherited a side that was still searching for its first league victory when he took charge, having collected only two points from their opening eight matches.
Although the draw added another point to their tally, it did little to ease the pressure surrounding the club.
‘We will weed out the cowards’ – Olutayo
Speaking after the match, Olutayo did not hide his disappointment with what he perceived as a failure by some players to understand and execute his tactical instructions.
He singled out Nwantesi for losing possession repeatedly but also acknowledged that the midfielder was frequently available to receive the ball, only to lack sufficient support from teammates.
The coach subsequently questioned the willingness of some players to take responsibility during matches, using particularly strong language to describe what he considered a problem with the squad’s mentality.
“If I have cowards in my team, which I am clearly not, if I have cowards in my team, well, we’re going to keep on having this issue. But don’t worry, we’ll weed them out,” Olutayo said.
He went further, insisting that he would also remove players he considered too soft or unable to process tactical information at the level he expected in the country’s top division.
“Weed out the cowards in the team, weed the soft players in the team, weed out the players who cannot recollect information at a high level in the team,” he added.
Olutayo argued that the Nigerian top flight should demand a higher standard of tactical understanding from its players and insisted that he had no intention of simplifying his instructions to accommodate what he perceived as shortcomings.
“I don’t want to be dumbing down my ideas for players right here. If I need to be dumbing down my ideas for players right here, that means that the quality of players in our league is poor,” he said.
The comments have prompted criticism from football fans, with some describing the public dressing down of professional players as unprofessional and questioning the approach adopted by the coach.
Olutayo insists players had clear instructions
Beyond his concerns about individual performances, the Inter Lagos manager maintained that the team’s problems were not caused by a lack of preparation or communication from the technical crew.
He explained that the players had undergone video analysis and separate tactical sessions covering different areas of the team ahead of the encounter.
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According to Olutayo, the sessions included work with the midfielders, attackers and defenders, with specific instructions communicated to the players despite the difficulties the club faced in securing adequate training time.
“We had a video meeting this week. We had individual group sessions, midfield session, attacking session, defensive session, as far as communication with them. Worked on clear ideas,” he explained.
The coach added that the team had worked on specific instructions during training and expected the players to reproduce them during matches.
“Despite the difficulty in getting training time, we still had clear things that we worked on for the players to do,” he said.
He also revealed that his frustration was visible from the opening minute, even when Inter Lagos were ahead on the scoreboard, suggesting that his concerns extended beyond the eventual loss of their lead.
The result leaves Inter Lagos 20th in the 20-team standings, with seven points earned from 11 matches through one victory, four draws and six defeats.
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However, their position is further complicated by the three-point deduction imposed by the NPFL following the club’s disciplinary breach during their earlier fixture against Katsina United.
Ranchers Bees, meanwhile, remain 19th with nine points from 10 matches, having recorded two wins, three draws and five defeats, with their postponed fixture against Doma United still outstanding.
The two promoted sides therefore remain firmly involved in the early relegation battle, although Inter Lagos face the more immediate pressure as they attempt to arrest their slide.
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