The Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) has taken a surprise decision by appointing Augustine Eguavoen as the Interim head coach of the Super Eagles for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying matches.
The decision followed a controversy surrounding the appointment process of Bruno Labbadia.
The coaching situation for the Super Eagles has recently garnered significant attention.
The NFF last Tuesday, announced Bruno Labbadia as the new head coach. However, just days after the announcement, Labbadia stepped down from the role.
The collapse of Labbadia’s appointment was confirmed on Friday, with reports indicating that the deal fell through due to Labbadia’s demands for the NFF to cover his tax liabilities in both Nigeria and Germany.
The unexpected turn of events has led the NFF to appoint Eguavoen as a temporary solution for the team’s coaching needs.
Confirming the report on Friday, the President of NFF, Ibrahim Musa Gusau, said: “We have been on the tax issue for the past three days, and I told him clearly that there was no way the NFF will agree to offset the concomitant tax percentage on his salary that will be demanded by German tax authorities. We can't shoulder the responsibility of shelling out another money, between 32% to 40% of his salary, after paying the agreed monthly wage.
"The NFF and Mr. Labbadia reached an agreement in principle before we made the announcement that he would become the Head Coach of the Super Eagles. The tax details were never part of our discussions, and he had personally agreed to all terms before the tax issue came up. We were doing our best to be flexible in the discussions but he was adamant that the NFF had to pay the full tax amount as well. We simply cannot do that.”
According to previous reports, this is the third time foreign coaches have failed to coach the three-time African champions after being announced by Nigeria’s football governing body.
The NFF in response to this unexpected turn of events, appointed technical director Augustine Eguaveon as interim coach for the international window.
According to previous reports, this marks the third instance of foreign coaches failing to take charge of the three-time African champions after being announced by Nigeria’s football governing body.
Concerns had been raised regarding his coaching staff, prompting the federation to release a follow-up communiqué detailing the support team for Eguavoen.
The interim coaching staff will include Fidelis Ilechukwu, who recently led Enugu Rangers to the NPFL title and has extensive experience managing various clubs in Nigerian football.
Daniel Ogunmodede is a 44-year-old former manager of Reno Star and ex-assistant manager at Portuguese club C.D. Feirense.
Tomaz Zorec, a Slovenian football manager joins as the fitness trainer. He recently worked as a fitness coach with NK Maribor.
Olatunji Baruwa is a goalkeeper trainer who has previously worked under former managers Findi George and Jose Peseiro.
Eboboritse Uwejamomere, serving as the match analyst. He has previously been a technical adviser at FC Stormers.
This diverse team is set to assist Eguavoen as he takes on the interim role amidst ongoing coaching changes.
