Sports
Nigeria Doesn’t Need Foreign Technical Director –Amodu
Former Super Eagles coach, Shaibu Amodu, has called on football administrators in the country to shelve the idea of appointing a foreigner as technical director.
Amodu, while speaking with journalists, said the problem with Nigerian football lay in the hands of all stakeholders and “no foreigner is required”.
“The problem of our football rests in our hands and until we become very sincere with ourselves by putting the right person in the right place, we will not get it right.
“Even if we go out 20 times to bring the best foreign coaches or technical directors, it won’t change any situation.
“If the Nigeria Football Association (NFF) has the intention of bringing in a foreign technical director, as it is in the pipeline now, I think it should shelve that idea,” he said.
The association is expected to name a technical director soon and some foreigners have had discussions with officials of the football house.
Amodu said if the association eventually appointed a foreigner, it would amount to disrespect for the numerous experienced Nigerian coaches who are now coaching resource persons.
“I don’t know why they will neglect the coaching resource persons in this country and go out for a foreign technical director.
“That is a measure of lack of respect for all that we have done for our football and that is not being fair.
“I have said it before that we don’t need a foreign person to help the NFA’s Technical Department to right the wrongs of our football.
“The football administrators have to get real down to business to make sure that they put the proper plan in place and put the right people in the right position.
“They will also have to fund the game at the grassroots level and we will begin to get the results”, he said.
The former Super Eagles coach described the NFA’s move as a repetition of history which the country should have learnt from.
“I think what they are trying to do again is a repetition of what we have always done to show more respect to a white man than to a black man.
“As I said some years back, it’s been a problem of inferiority complex on the part of our administrators and I say it’s generic.
“It has repeated itself times without number and each time they want to blindfold Nigerians, they try to bury this foreign person thing around it.
“The psychology seems to be sticky that we think things are going to be right if we see a white person.
“Not until things go wrong again, we begin to say the person was not right for us and he should leave. But he will have no regrets because he must have taken our money already.
“History has not taught us anything as a nation and that is why we keep on making mistakes,” Amodu said.
Vice president of the Nigeria Olympics Committee (NOC), Chief Solomon Ogba, foremost Sports Marketer and founder of Okpekpe Road Race, Mike Itemuagbor and top Sports Journalist and Media Strategist, Mitchel Obi have lent their voices in support of the Niger Delta Sports Festival (NDSF).
The personalities with backgrounds in sports administration, marketing and media spoke separately in commendation of the festival, an initiative of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) with Dunamis Icon as consultants.
“This is a positive addition to the evolving sports business ecosystem because it is not just a springboard for identifying talents, it also offers a platform to truly hone the skills of those already discovered”, remarked Obi, who served as Special Advisor to a former Sports Minister, late Anthony Ikhazabor.
He said the festival will be a flagship event in the region that would trigger interest in sports among the youths and people of the region.
Edo State-born Itemuagbor commended the NDDC for the decision to add sports in the list of their intervention projects in the region, adding that: “This speaks directly to the problem of youth restiveness which is of great concern to our people.”
Raphael Onyedika has now emerged as a major doubt for the Super Eagles’ must-win 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Rwanda and Zimbabwe later this month.
The midfielder was forced out early from last week’s league game against Standard Liege.
He has not recovered from the injury and so will miss today’s league match against Gent and may also miss a UEFA Champions League Round of 16 clash against Aston Villa yesterday.
The Super Eagles take on Rwanda in Kigali on March 21, before they face Zimbabwe in Uyo four days later in crucial World Cup qualifiers.
Nigeria’s Super Eagles and Al-Khalood defender, William Troost-Ekong, has shared his experience on the difficulties of winning the prestigious Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) while describing it a must win trophy.
The former Watford FC defender has competed in the tournament three times but has yet to lift the trophy.
“I’ve been there three times now, bronze medal, silver medal, but I haven’t had the chance to win it. That remains my ultimate goal,” he told Tidesports source.
“It means so much to me and all the kids growing up in Africa and Nigeria.”