Former India coach Sukhwinder Singh feels players like Odafe are crowd pullers and good advertisement for the game.
"In the past, people used to come to see Cheema and Emeka. There was a dip in between, but now Odafe is creating waves in the I-League," says Sukhwinder, a former national coach.
But Brazilian Jose Barretto, who remains the most successful overseas player in recent times, feels that the quality of African footballers has gone down in the last four to five years.
"We had some good African footballers in India, but I feel in the last four-five years the quality has gone down. The two main reasons are cash crunch and lack of proper scouting. I also feel the clubs are to also blame for it. Had they been more professional in their approach, the quality of foreigners could have improved," Barretto, who now plays for Kolkata's Bhowanipore FC in second division I-League, told IANS.
Barretto feels Martins remains the best African player in the last five years adding that it is discipline that sets Brazilian players apart from all other overseas imports.
