A Nigerian Olympian in 1988 and a World Cupper in 1994, Emeka had enthralled the local football fans in the late 80s and had returned to Bangladesh with high hopes after being promised a coaching position with his old club Mohammedan. But what he has found out to his dismay is that the standard of football has gone down remarkably in this country and the present officials of the Black and Whites are not the warm, dedicated souls he used to know.

"I had played some great games with great players here but now all I see is rubbish," said the 38-year-old.

"Players do not move with the ball now. Only two or three are involved with the ball while the others just watch. They play like school kids. It just can't go on like this."

Emeka was also puzzled by the way the Mohammedan officials have treated him since he arrived in Dhaka last month following repeated requests from the club.

"They were desperate to bring me here. They were almost weeping on the phone. They begged me to join as coach and also to bring some footballers for the club as the team was going through a crisis. But now, two top officials of the club have shut the door on my face saying they can not afford me.

"They have chosen to field a foreign player who is not even good enough for 90 minutes while rejecting the boys I have brought along with me. They had requested me to bring cheap players who would cost between 3-5 thousand dollars. It would have been possible for me to bring Kanu (Nwanko) or Jay Jay (Okocha) even if they could afford such big players."

Rumour had surfaced that Emeka demanded about US dollars 18,000 per month as salary but the Nigerian refuted that saying he was prepared to work for 5,000 dollars a month.

"I was supposed to start a coaching job in New York from tomorrow for 20,000 dollars per month. I have made great sacrifices to come here and salvage the club I love, but things here are not like they were in the past," said Emeka who is now settled in New York.

"I had reached great heights after playing here so my love for this country and Mohammedan is everlasting. I came here to repay my debts but the club officials but those who are running it now are not working for the interest of the club. They are only interested in their businesses. This is the reason why Mohammedan have not won any trophies recently," said Emeka who last played for the club in 1988.

"Mohammedan is a people's club but the supporters are dead. How could this happen to such a great club? The men who were there when I was here, are no longer in the limelight."

Emeka had to spend three years in a London hospital following a severe road accident in Nigeria in December 1994 after he had played for the Super Eagles in the USA World Cup earlier that year. He was recalled in the 1998 World Cup squad but decided not to join.

"The entire left side of my body was broken after a truck ran over my car. I recovered and my country thought I was fit to play. But I got involved in coaching and decided to stay out of the national team," said Emeka, who played in Holland, Spain and Hungary after leaving Bangladesh.

Emeka, who last coached Peru's Premier League club Deportivo Municipal, is a UEFA B-licence holder from Holland. He added that he was looking forward to staying in Bangladesh a little longer and was prepared to help other clubs if things did not work out with Mohammedan. Already a few clubs have shown interest in his service, said the Nigerian.