The NFF have finally decided on who leads the team into the crucial World Cup qualifiers next month
Nigerian gaffer Augustine Eguavoen will continue as the interim coach of the Super Eagles, while former Barcelona star Emmanuel Amuneke will serve as his assistant.
Eguavoen was appointed as interim boss of the Super Eagles last December to lead Nigeria to the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon after German tactician Gernot Rohr was sacked.
However, days before the start of the African showpiece, the Nigeria Football Federation appointed Portuguese coach Jose Peseiro to lead the three-time African champions after the AFCON.
Nonetheless, under the tutelage of Eguavoen, the Super Eagles put up outstanding performances, winning all three of their group games. Unfortunately, they were ousted in the quarterfinals after a poor 1-0 loss to Tunisia.
After the Nations Cup, the NFF remained silent on whether Eguavoen would continue at his post or whether Peseiro would lead Nigeria against Ghana in the crucial World Cup qualifiers.
But on Monday, they released a statement via their website stating that Eguavoen would continue as interim coach. They also drafted Amuneke to serve as his assistant.
“The NFF Board has approved a recommendation of the Technical and Development Committee, retaining Augustine Eguavoen as Technical Director/Technical Adviser (interim), while Emmanuel Amuneke becomes the Chief Coach of the Super Eagles.”
“Salisu Yusuf will be the 2nd Assistant Coach/Chief Coach of the CHAN team, and Joseph Yobo will be 3rd Assistant while Aloysius Agu remains the Goalkeepers’ Trainer,” the statement read.
Amuneke coached the team that won the 2015 Under-17 World Cup, and some of the products of that team like Victor Osimhen and Samuel Chukwueze are now core players in the Super Eagles.
The Last time Eguavoen was sacked while on the Super Eagles job was after a loss to Ghana, but he will hope to rewrite history this time by leading Nigeria to the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
Hope we Nigerians will let them do their job this time for God’s sake!!! And those distracting the players with money phone calls and advice during breaks should stop that nonsense. This is the only team we have (SUPER EAGLES)
I hope what I read on certain Nigeria football wibesite is not true that Eguavoen has rejected Amunike as his assistant. He demanded that his assistants at AFCON should be retained.
If this is true,it means Eguavoen is intimidated by Amunike prowess and achievements in football both as a player and Coach so far.
Initially football fans prefer Amunike to Eguavoen as SE coach after the exit of Gernot Rohr.
Before NFF come up with a public announcement of this type about Super Eagles coaching crew. Their roles, acceptance and involvement must have been agreed upon. Those writing those negative stories, that’s part of that distraction and won’t just give something a chance. It’s ridiculous!!!
Amunike is a coach who can do very well as the SE coach. He has shown his qualities as a very good mentor to some of the players in the current SE. No doubt, Amunike will help develop our current star players to reach their potentials and help the teams to perform exceedingly well at major competitions.
I think Amunike will add an excellent strength for Super Eagles , because he has potential to develop SE players and he has an excellent conceptions on enhancing pattern of tacticts and ways of how to perform ; so he will change the shape of SE defensively and in forward.I recommend Eguavoen to advise him on a micro and accurate things which appertain SE like player’s functions, player’s performance, player’s copper test, choosing players abroad and indoors or base players, following NPLF matches in order to choose or select a good players to recall them on SE, how to play a defensive and how to enforce SE defensive side with choosing strong and excellent defensive midfielders and center backs like Usman Mohammed, Alhassan Ibrahim, strong (DM) from NPLF; choosing excellent forwards like Ighalo, Dessers, Amoo, from NPLF to renforce SE forward.