The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) must not repeat its previous mistakes by claiming to be more patriotic to Nigeria than supporters of a foreign coach for the country. A foreign coach has become critical for the Nigerian Super Eagles if the federation’s top brass are willing to move Nigerian football from its current state of failure.
The Abuja Glasshouse is already on the verge of adopting and duplicating the previous administration’s lacklustre leadership style, which relegated the country’s football four decades ago. They began with the contentious hiring of two former superstars turned coaches recently. This negative report spread the word that Coach Emmanuel Amuneke had been hired as the Eagles’ head coach. The rumour spread like wildfire, as if it were true!
Some Nigerians, however, were shocked a month later when Coach Finidi George was announced as the official Head Coach of the national team. Yes, this Columnist was not surprised by the federation’s latest move because that is how the Glasshouse administrators decided to run the football federation some thirty years ago, and it has not benefited the country or the federation except for the selfish purpose it has continued to serve.
Hear me out: who is better for the Eagles, coaches Amuneke or Finidi?
If you ask me, both personalities were outstanding Nigerian players. They also possessed various sterling qualities of play during their peak years for both their country and their various clubs abroad.
They also have a distinct coaching and discipline style both on and off the pitch, which affects their relationships with their players at the club level and with management.
So, if the federation is speaking ill of one for the other simply because you chose to settle for the other in order to create bad blood between them, yours truly believes that it is uncalled for. And I can confidently state that this ugly development will not help the chosen one’s chances of a stellar performance with the Eagles. The federation should remember that both indigenous coaches are Nigerians and should be treated with respect. Of course, Nigerians understand that neither of them can be Head Coaches for the Eagles, so whoever they choose, the other should not be mocked for whatever reason.
I am concerned about the Eagles’ future now that they have hired an indigenous coach. I am concerned about the advice Coach Finidi will receive from stakeholders and federation members. And given that both former national team players and current coaches would have started to see each other as enemies (but God forbid). In this country, we pretend that there is no love lost, but in reality, we harbour malice and hold grudges. And if this happens, the NFF must be held accountable for failing to take an initial stand on which coach they wanted for the national team by refuting the so-called Amuneke rumour.
As things stand, the country’s football federation should not hesitate to hire a competent and resourceful technical adviser for the team, while keeping Coach Finidi as head coach. If this precaution is not taken immediately, Coach Finidi may not be able to stay with the team. Whether we like him or not, he will undoubtedly be sabotaged; the NFF still has an ugly tradition of discouraging coaches in some form or another. I stand to be corrected.
In fact, if this federation wants to do something different than its predecessors and go a long way towards reshaping and repositioning the Eagles from its unpopular ways, it must hire a foreign coach, regardless of the cost, if it truly wants the Eagles to rise to the top of football among the comity of nations. The federation must immediately hire a “White” witch coach who can break Nigeria’s “spell” of football stagnation. If this is not done, Nigeria will continue to suffer from the dismissal, hiring, and re-employment of sacked indigenous coaches in the country. This development has plagued the country’s football. Thank you, God, for an infinite world. Amen. Good morning, Nigeria.
