BEVERLY HILLS, August 25, (THEWILL) – Former Nigerian international, Finidi George, says he was a natural midfielder in his early playing days at Calabar Rovers and Sharks of Port Harcourt before he was converted into a winger by former Super Eagles coach, Clemens Westerhof.
George made the revelation during an interview with a Lagos based radio station.
“I was a midfielder during my days in Calabar Rovers and Sharks. It was when I got into the Super Eagles and we had too many midfielders and I couldn’t break through. So Westerhof decided to convert me to play on the right side because of my pace, because of my way of thinking and understanding the game. He gave me that opportunity to play on the right side and that was how I started to play in that position. Normally I was not a wing player.”
Finidi, who was likened to David Beckham during his days as a player, however, stated that he personally improved himself.
He added: “Nobody (coached me). You have to work on your craft, work on your skills and I think because I was a midfield player, which helped me a lot. When you play in the midfield, you always try to look for others to give that through pass to. I look for the strikers all the time.
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“So when I was converted to play on the right side, my first option, whenever I got the ball, was to look for others. That was how I started looking out for Rashidi Yekini, Daniel Amokachi, and others, trying to feed them with balls and everything just worked out fine. When I knew assist was part of the game, I started doing what I was used to when I was playing in the midfield.”
THEWILL reports that Finidi made 62 appearances for the Super Eagles and scored six goals.
