Libyan strongman, Muammar Gaddafi, was not passionate about football, he used it to advance political goals. Nigerian referee,Alhaji Salaudeen counted himself lucky to officiate in a match that brought the supreme leader to Tripoli Stadium.
In 1983, Gaddafi graced an African Cup of Champion Clubs ( today’s CAF Champions League) game between Al Ahly Tripoli and JET Algeria at the 65,000 capacity stadium. At the time, diplomatic ties between Libya and Algeria were not so smooth.
Algeria aligned with Tunisia in 1983 by signing the Treaty of Fraternity and Concord between both countries. Gaddafi felt bad with his erstwhile allies and responded in 1984 by looking towards Morroco with the Treaty of Oudja.
Their ties were cold when Salaudeen and linesmen, Linus Mba and Ibrahim Gobir took charge of the Al Ahli versus JET duel. The referee was not intimidated by Gaddafi’s presence and gave a good account of himself. The match ended 1-0 in favour of the Algerians.
It turned out to be a red letter day for the Nigerian trio. There was no crowd trouble, both sides behaved themselves and at the end JET Captain, Ali Fergani, the man who led the Desert Foxes to humiliate European champions, West Germany 2-1 at the España ’82 World Cup, could not hide his joy.
Salaudeen said : ” Both teams were satisfied with the officiating, the two skippers removed their jerseys and handed over to me. Libya and Algeria were not so friendly then. I was driven like a President, with my colleagues Mba and Gobir, to our Halif Hotel base. President Gaddafi watched the match.”
Of course, soccer won at the end of the day. Salaudeen was experienced having received the FIFA badge in 1981. He was also a soldier who joined the Army on September 17, 1968 during the Nigerian Civil War. In 1969, the soldier man became a Grade Three Referee.
Ahly Tripoli lost the second leg in Algeria 2-0 and were kicked out in the first round. Asante Kotoko of Ghana lifted the trophy much later after defeating Al Ahli or Egypt. Coach of the winning side, Ibrahim Sunday, a Nigerian from Kano, had also captained the Porcupines to win in 1970.
Salaudeen’s performance must have impressed FIFA. In 1985, he was chosen as one of the referees at the inaugural FIFA Under 17 Championships, China ’85 which was won by his country’s Golden Eaglets. Africa had two other referees at the competition.
Three other referees made name. Two positive, the other negative. Brazil’s Arnaldo Cezar Coelho, did three years earlier as grand finale handler in the game between Italy and West Germany. Carlos Esposito of Argentina was at the Mexico ’86 World Cup.
Christopher Bambridge of Australia put himself to shame when he did his worst to stop Nigeria from winning the China ‘ 85 tournament. The Aussie sent out right back Tuonworimi Duere in the bid to make things easier for West Germany in the final. Victor Igbinoba put everything beyond mischief with a second goal that silenced sponsors, Kodak.
Salaudeen returned to Nigeria and remained a first class referee after quitting the Army as a Warrant Officer. Gaddafi continued to play politics with soccer and even used his third son, Saadi to woo Europe and intimidate Libya. And there was no trophy to show for all the political interest.
In 1982, Ghana was so poor that the Black Stars were nearly going to miss the Libya ’82 Nations Cup. Gaddafi came to their rescue. The Ghanaians refused to play politics, they also refused to play ball. Ghana and Libya qualified for the grand finale. Full time scores were even. Extra time did not help matters. The hosts were edged out on penalties. Abedi Pele was just 17. That remains his lone African Nations Cup gold.
Saadi Gaddafi forced his way into big time soccer. The Gaddafis became part owners of Juventus, Italy. Saadi played at home for Al Ahli Tripoli and Al Ittihad. He even captained the Libyan national team.
The younger Gaddafi tried to change the face of Libyan soccer. Victor Ikpeba of the Super Eagles and Patrick Mboma, a Cameroonian Indomitable Lion were attracted to Tripoli. Another Nigerian, Chikelue Iloenyosi also hit the Libyan capital.
Saadi was a super power while Ikpeba and Mboma became superstars. In 2000, Ahly Benghazi were leading Ahli Tripoli 1-0 after 45 minutes. The referee awarded Saadi’s side two stupid penalties and manufactured an offside goal to make it 3-1.
The Benghazi boys could not take the madness. They walked out of the pitch. Saadi ordered his guards to move. The protesting players were guarded back to the pitch with guns smiling wryly at them. Play resumed and the March ended 3-1 for Saadi Gaddafi.
Then Europe saw Saadi. He joined Italian club Peruggia.It was more of razzmatazz. Diego Maradona was hired as Technical Consultant. Disgraced speed demon, Ben Johnson served as Trainer.
Saadi spent 2000 to 2007 in Italy but did not graduate beyond the level of a sub, most of the time warming the bench. When he was introduced, he was what Nollywood would call Waka Pass, which meant filling the numbers. Against Juventus his favourite club, Perrugia allowed him15 minutes. Against Cagliari, Udinese showed his face for just 10 minutes. Sampdoria could have picked him as Mascot.
It was business for the Europeans. Libyan oil could open doors even if Gaddafi was seen as a terrorist. Perrugia owner, Luciano Gauci was the same man who felt like firing Ahn Jung-hwan for scoring for South Korea against Italy at the 2002 World Cup.
Salaudeen was born in 1948, in Kawo Kaduna. Two years later, in 1950, Al Ahly Libya was formed. The club chose Green and white as colours. Those are the colours of the Nigerian national team too. Salaudeen played for Northern Region Academicals in 1966.
Salaudeen did not continue with active soccer when he joined the Army. Refereeing became more attractive. He became a Grade Two in 1973 and Grade One in 1975. Along the line, Hajia Aisha came into his life as better half.
Nigerians have continued to do good in Libya like Salaudeen did in 1983. Tony Osheku was there to train the country’s athletes. Izu Azuka played for Al Ittihad, against Nigerian teams. Before them, Nigerian soldiers parading as West African Frontier Forces had seen action in Tobruk during the Second World War.