The German manager had not failed any of the targets set by the NFF in his contract, but that did not save him from being dismissed on Sunday
Gernot Rohr has expressed his frustration after the Nigerian Football Federation sacked him as the Super Eagles head coach.
The German gaffer is the longest-serving Super Eagles handler after guiding the team for five years and four months.
Rohr was hired in August 2016 after Nigeria failed to qualify for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations tournament – where the Eagles would have defended the title they won at South Africa 2013.
With Rohr in charge, the Super Eagles made it to the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia and the 2019 Afcon with a game to spare in each case, even as the team finished in third place at the latter tournament.
The former Bordeaux manager was then handed a new two-year contract and charged with qualifying the three-time Afcon kings for the 2022 World Cup and winning the 2021 Afcon.
Rohr was on course to hitting those targets, with Nigeria among the favourites to lift the title at Cameroon 2021 while the Eagles have booked a spot in the final playoff rounds for Qatar 2022.
But the NFF, on Sunday, announced the dismissal of the former Burkina Faso chief coach, with barely four weeks to the commencement of the continental championship.
Some of the reasons given by NFF boss Amaju Pinnick for Rohr’s sacking include indiscipline and the penchant for Rohr’s team to struggle to win matches.
While Rohr has refused to join issues with the football administrator, the 68-year-old has pointed out that he worked with a united group of players.
The German gaffer confessed that the Super Eagles are a great side, and it would be difficult for him to live without them.
“It’s a huge frustration, but I don’t want to argue; it’s not my style,” Rohr told AFP, as per RFI.
“(I’m) convinced that they will have a very good CAN because the team is in place, and this very united group is ready for the challenges that await it.
“I’m going to have a hard time doing without these great players and this very united staff, but the environment is not always favourable; we cannot control everything.”
Rohr had handled the national teams of Gabon, Niger, and Burkina Faso before he was appointed the Super Eagles coach 64 months ago.
Eagles goalkeeper Maduka Okoye has since penned an emotional tribute to Rohr, who gave him his national team debut just over two years ago.
NOW THAT U HAVE FIRED HIM, QUICKLY MAKE HIM THE HEAD OF OUR SCOUTTING TEAM.
Left with me Mr. Gernot Rohr ought to have vacated that position for long, know restpect to Mr. Rohr but I believe football have evolve beyond he can imagine in terms of technicalities and otherwise, most times in a matche when u expect Mr. Rohr to make the different, he fused out..
Any coach that knows his onions would have lost the match between Nigerias Algeria, not to talk of the world cup where he was exposed, yet most of us never saw that. Yes sometimes hardluck can’t be overlooked, that’s football for u.
Kudos to NFF .. here u did well, but I must urge u to also act fast in retaining Mr. Rohr as the head of our scouting teams. I must confess to u, he is really doing a nice job there, what he lack is the grease that will bring the shine of this current set of players.
Super have a squard that if properly mined can stand any team currently in the world… Just a little bit of changes in our defense I bet u the Super Eagle will go places but certainly not with Mr. Rohr nor Austin Eguavon.
The timing of this sacking is off. How do you do this before a major tournament? The best time to have done this was after a major tournament followed by bringing in a better coach. The appointment of Eguavoen doesn’t seem to indicate progress and doesn’t provoke excitement. I suspect corruption