Member of the NFF Technical Committee clarifies the role of Eguavoen, new foreign coach of Super Eagles

Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) technical committee member Victor Ikpeba has given a fair insight into the managerial situation of the Nigeria senior team ahead of the AFCON qualifiers against Libya, reports OwnGoalNigeria.com.

Eguavoen has extended his mandate as coach of the team on an interim basis for the matches against Libya on October 11 and 15 respectively.

The NFF statement does not indicate whether he will fill the position on an interim basis or not and Ikpeba was asked to define the coach’s role after extra time.

“Yes, I can confirm that the position remains interim,” Ikpeba said during the broadcast of Monday Live Football on SuperSports.

When asked further about whether the NFF is still looking for a foreign coach, Ikpeba said the time has not come and said it could be reviewed depending on how the team evolves under Eguavoen’s interim management.

He went further and explained why they have struggled to hire a foreign coach for the team since the departure of Finidi George, and the announcement of an expatriate coach expected to be his replacement.

“You know, I think the process had problems initially, we wanted a foreign manager, but there was a lot of speculation. Some people from the government, from the ministry, wanted a local coach, and finally we had one. Unfortunately, Finidi’s situation ended like this and difficult decisions have to be made. We had the manager we wanted, Bruno Labbadia, who I think got cold feet and left the job.

“There will be a time when decisions will have to be made as to whether Eguavoen continues as head coach or returns to his role as technical director of the NFF. He knows it and everyone knows it too, but I prefer that we arrive first because many things can change in football,” he concluded in response to Eguavoen assuming the role of coach, whether permanently or not.

Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman