As the search for a permanent coach for the senior national team of Nigeria gathers pace, reports emerged yesterday that the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has settled for Emmanuel Amunike as the new coach of the team.
Amunike according to some reports got the nod to replace Jose Peseiro and will work in tandem with Finidi George, who was the assistant of the Portuguese coach during his 18 months stay as coach of the team.
Reacting to the news, a member of the technical committee of the NFF who spoke with the online version of Nigerian newspaper Thisday poured cold water on the news, stating that the football house will likely go out of the list of shortlisted candidates for the job and get a world class coach.
“I have read reports about those people believe will step into the Super Eagles Head Coach job. Most are speculations. If you want to hear the truth from me, we are taking the search beyond all the coaches that are being speculated so far. We are looking towards hiring of another expatriate tactician,” observed the top football personality who did not want his name in print.
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He insisted that while they are not totally opposed to the idea of having an indigenous coach, they believe that a capable replacement for Peseiro will be a foreign coach with a proven track record of success.
“The only problem we have now is that we want to hire a world-classed coach. I have nothing against indigenous coaches. The person we need at the moment is a foreign coach with the prerequisite experience to handle the Super Eagles. He must be the type of coach who will come and support in the overall development of our football.
“The Super Eagles as presently constituted are too big for the indigenous coaches that Nigerians are clamouring for. They are not bad coaches, but they are not yet at the level that they can effectively handle the senior national team.
“If you talk to most of my colleagues in the committee, they will tell you the samething. Most of us are for a foreign coach for the Super Eagles. I believe the NFF will see reason with some of us on this matter,” observed this influential member of the NFF Technical Committee.
