Gernot rohr reveals why Michael Olise rejected Super Eagles

Former Super Eagles head coach Gernot Rohr has detailed his failed attempt to convince Michael Olise to commit his international future to Nigeria, revealing the winger's early confidence in his trajectory to global stardom. 

The German tactician made the comment in a recent interview with Brila, narrating how they made a concerted effort to land the former Crystal Palace winger.

"In 2019, I saw this player and I had a look on him with my assistant, Tunde. We went to watch a match and we tried to invite him but he did not want to join us at the time,” Rohr said.

Speculating why they got rejected, he said, “Because I think he already knew he can have a big future in an European team and can play for several countries, of course. 

“And this player, six or seven years ago when we saw him he was so strong. Unfortunately, he refused to play for Nigeria." 

This pursuit of Olise was a core component of the Nigerian Football Federation's (NFF) deliberate policy during Rohr's August 2016 to December 2021 tenure to poach elite foreign-born players of Nigerian descent. 

While Rohr successfully integrated dual-nationals like Ola Aina, Joe Aribo, Maduka Okoye, and Kevin Akpoguma into the squad, targets like Olise and Eberechi Eze slipped through the federation's grasp.

Olise’s audacious personal projection regarding his immense potential has since been completely validated, as the 24-year-old has emphatically established himself as one of the best attacking players in world football since his blockbuster move to Bayern Munich. 

Fulfilling his ambition to represent a top-tier European nation, the dynamic winger officially pledged his allegiance to France, having accumulated 15 caps and 4 goals for Les Bleus so far. 

His reality stands in stark contrast to Nigeria's current international fortunes; while Olise is expected to star for the French national team at the impending World Cup in North America, the Super Eagles are painfully set to miss out on the tournament altogether following a disastrous CAF qualification campaign where they finished with 17 points, trailing behind group winners South Africa, and losing against DR Congo in the playoffs.