Following the sack of Stephen Keshi as the head coach of the Super Eagles, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) face an uphill task to name a credible coach for the Super Eagles.
The NFF announced that, the federation would name a credible coach for the senior national team in two weeks. Is two week enough time to hire a sound coach for the Super Eagles? Except if the NFF have been secretly chopping for a coach before now.
Keshi’s job came under intense scrutiny when his name appeared on the FIF website as one of more than 50 candidates applying for Cote d’Ivoire national team coaching job.
The 53-year-old, who was re-appointed as the country’s senior national team coach in April, was sacked on Saturday; with assistant Salisu Yusuf and the Technical Directorate of the NFF, led by Amodu Shuaibu, to take over till a substantive handler is announced.
The biggest question now is, who succeeds Keshi?
Former Super Eagles assistant coach, Joe Erico, in a telephone chat with BusinessDay urged Amaju Pinnick to name an indigenous coach for the Super Eagles.
“Only an indigenous coach understand Nigeria grassroots football, communicates and understand the players better than a foreign coach, Erico said.”
“Foreign coaches have abandon the team in the past, but local coaches stick with the team even when the chips are down.
The former Nigerian international further said:
“Local coaches have qualified us twice to the world cup, 2002 and 2014 respectively, but got sacked at the end of the day, but foreign coaches have not won the world cup for us, they collect our money and go without adding value to our football.”
In a contrast opinion, Ex-Super Eagles handler, Johannes Bonfrere, has made a passionate call to the NFF to appoint a foreign coach as next Super Eagles coach.
According to the 69-year old Dutch tactician who led the Nigeria’s U23 soccer team to win the 1996 Olympics football event said only a foreign tactician can help the Super Eagles back to the peak again.
“I think the NFF need to hire a foreign coach to take charge of the Super Eagles,” Bonfrere said.
“The Super Eagles have failed to make much impact since they won the African Cup of Nations in 2013 and it has to do with the inability of the coaches to take the team to new heights.
“Personally, I don’t think Stephen Keshi have what it takes to take the team beyond where they are now.
“So the decision made by the NFF to sack him was the right one.
“The next task before them now is to carefully look for a capable foreign coach that can help improve the performance of the team.”
Also, former Super Eagles boss, Christian Chukwu, has lend his voice on who takes charge of the senior national team.
“We cannot run the national team on a caretaker coaching level. So it is either they confirm the caretaker people or they employ a Technical Adviser.
“Whether the NFF opts for a foreign coach or local one, I believe that coaches are the same all over the world. You can remember that I was a foreign coach too. I acted as one in Kenya and other places.
“The most important thing is what the coach is bringing to the team for the team to continue to improve, develop and later, be ranked among the best in world football. Whether it is a black man or a white man, what he brings to the table is what matters most”, he added.
NFF president, Amaju Pinnick, as a matter of urgency should replace Keshi with a renounced, sound and dynamic coach with years of experience on the job.
Again, a coach that can command respect, restore discipline, cohesion and sanity into the national team.
Time is ticking fast and Nigeria should avoid the shameful and shambolic repeat of 2015 AFCON where Nigeria failed to defend the trophy it won in 2013.
The Super Eagles started their Africa Cup of Nations qualifying series on a good note, by beating Chad 2-0.
Super Eagle will play Tanzania on September 4th in their next round of 2017 African Cup of Nations qualifiers.
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Anthony Nlebem
@AnthonyNlebem
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