FIFA’s Chief of global development Arsene Wenger seems to have sent waves of shivers into the heart of the big moguls at UEFA with his recent comments on the need to help Africa improve its football Infrastructure.
Wenger seems to suggest that Africa’s infrastructure is inadequate for talent development. And the former Arsenal manager believes that Europe is the only continent where rising stars can reach full potential.
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The former Arsenal boss seems to have ruffled feathers of CONMEBOL president Alejandro Dominguez who through the organization issued a baseless statement condemning Wenger’s progressive suggestions on the need to support Africa so that many of it’s stars don’t look at Europe a final destination.
While speaking at the International Coaching Conference in Freiburg, Germany, in May Wenger said that “if French striker Kylian Mbappe “had been born in Cameroon, he wouldn’t have become the striker he is today.”
“There’s Europe and there’s rest of the world. The latter needs help, otherwise we’re going to miss a great deal of talent.” Wenger added.
CONMEBOL said frequently in its response that the “Most objectionable prejudices are disguised as reasoned and intelligent reflections. Wenger’s words, beyond showing an unusual ignorance about the valuable input of African players in world soccer, and particularly in Europe, show a denigrating twist that hides the effort of footballers and sporting institutions that are not in Europe.” The CONMEBOL statement said.
“Just like Africans, we South Americans know first hand that kind of behavior that comes from the belief that the world begins and ends in Europe.”
The CONMEBOL President seems to have lost the plot in his urge to please the UEFA President and be his mouthpiece. Everyone in good faith following football knows that Arsène Wenger is a friend of Africa. Some of our continent best players consider him as a father such was his importance to their careers.
The point of his statements was exactly to highlight that Africa football needs to develop in order to detect and retain its talent for longer instead of seeing hundreds of players fleeing at early age to Europe.
Only a handful of them make it to the top. This is a structural problem and any African fan knows it. Wenger is working to help us change that. Europe and Ceferin are interested in keeping their undisputed domain. We must be aware of this expose people like Dominguez who think serious matters can be used for their political interests.
Arsene Wenger has the interest of Africa at heart way before he joined FIFA. He has natured some of the best African players during his coaching career while he was at Arsenal and Monaco. Wenger’s dance with African football players began long before his successful spell at Arsenal; during his Monaco days in fact, when he nurtured Weah from a rough diamond to the polished gem who eventually made history as the first non-European winner of the Ballon d’Or.
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George Weah who is now Liberia’s President holds the Frenchman in high regard. “He [Wenger] was a father figure and regarded me as his son.” Weah told FIFA.com last November. “This was a man, when racism was at its peak, who showed me love. He wanted me to be on the pitch for him every day.
“Every time I went on the pitch, playing for him, I wanted him to know the ways I could pay him back. I could break my knee, my face, my hand for him – just to win a game.”
Wenger did not stop at George Weah such that he went on to coach some of the best talents Africa has ever seen. Among the notables include the likes of Nwanku Kanu, Lauren, Kolo Toure, Emmanuel Eboue and Emmanuel Adebayor.
Kolo Toure was an unknown player in his native Ivory Coast. He was signed for £150,000 from ASEC Mimosas after impressing on trial. And Wenger was keen to stress that his new acquisition was still a long way away from first-team football.
“We think he has the basic potential to become a very good player.” Wenger said of Toure in 2002. “He won’t feature in the first-team squad immediately. Because he’ll need at least three to four months’ work.”
The Ivorian thrived under the watchful eye of Wenger and only had good words him. “I would never say a bad word about Mr. Wenger.” said Toure, then of Manchester City, in 2011. “He is somebody that makes players better. I came from nowhere. I was in Africa and nobody believed in me. I’d been at a lot of clubs that didn’t take me. This guy made me what I am now.”