…Sports Minister unveil Finidi, commends NFF, Gusau promises total support for Easgle coach
From Romanus Ugwu, Abuja
Newly unveiled Super Eagles coach, Finidi George, has declared that he will not allow the disparity in the financial rewards given to foreign and local handlers of the senior national team to distract him.
Fielding questions from newsmen after his formal unveiling in Abuja on Monday, the Nigerian former international expressed optimism that the football federation and the ministry of Sports Development will reward him if he produces good results.
Finidi also spoke on the speculated flexibility in the control of the majorly foreign-based Eagles players, urging Nigerians to understand that there is a limit to exacting control over players to keep the team united.
He said that his priority and main target will be to lead the team to secure the FIFA World Cup ticket, promising that it is a mission possible for him.
“My first target is to make sure that we are in line to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup by winning the upcoming two matches against South Africa and Benin Republic. The 2025 AFCON qualifiers will soon start and we must also be prepared for those as well.
“I know what the NFF wants as it is boldly written in the contract, and I will work very hard to add value to the team and put myself in the position to earn even more than I will be earning from the take-off,” he said.
Meanwhile, Minister of Sports Development, John Owan Enoh, has thrown his full weight on the hiring an indigenous coach for the Eagles, praising the leadership of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) for the decision despite the plethora of foreign tacticians that applied for the job.
“As a student of the University of Calabar in those days, I used to go to the UJ Esuene Stadium to watch Calabar Rovers, which included Finidi George. I am excited to see him seated here as the new Head Coach of the Super Eagles. We will give him all the supports he needed,” Enoh promised.
Equally speaking during the unveiling, President of NFF, Ibrahim Musa Gusau, expressed happiness over the ‘new chapter’ the Federation opened in the Nigeria game.
Gusau also revealed that the football-governing body is determined to fully support Finidi and his assistants to lead the Super Eagles to new heights. “When we returned from the Africa Cup of Nations in Cote d’Ivoire, we began the search for a new Head Coach.
“There was a plethora of foreign applicants, far more than the indigenous applicants. However, we undertook a thorough process that has produced an indigenous Coach and we are very happy about that.
“Finidi George was part of the technical crew that came close to winning the AFCON, and we have faith in him that he will lead the team to the title next time. Our objective now is to ensure the enthronement of excellence at all levels of the national teams,” he said.