The decision to replace Finidi George as head coach of the Nigeria senior team was taken by the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) after consultation with the team’s senior players. Own goal Nigeria.com can reveal exclusively.
A statement from the NFF following the team’s disappointing performance in the World Cup qualifiers against South Africa and Benin Republic said the board unanimously decided to hire an expatriate coach for the team.
Finidi subsequently resigned from his position as the team’s head coach instead taking on the role of assistant, a decision he claims he made because the NFF did not inform him before an announcement was made public.
Speaking about the decision, a board member of the football body said they took the step after hearing from certain players in the team about the coach’s training methods and tactics for both games.
“We (NFF) did not just stand up and say that Finidi was leaving after a month. A lot of thought and consultation went into making the decision, some players in the team, i.e. veteran players, told us that they were not comfortable with his training methods,” he said. Own goal Nigeria.com.
“It was at that moment that we decided to take the decisive step that will help our football continue to advance,” he concluded.
