After months of undue hesitation, the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) has appointed Malian tactician, Éric Sekou Chelle, as the head coach of the Super Eagles. The new coach will take over from the interim manager, Augustine Eguavoen, the Technical Director of the team, who qualified the team for the 2025 AFCON tournament, to be hosted by Morocco. The appointment of the former Malian national team coach has stirred mixed reactions from Super Eagles fans and stakeholders, some of who believe the shoe is too big for Chelle. However, we urge Nigerians to support the new manager since he is the best the NFF can afford at the moment.
Chelle may not be in the class of elite World Cup winning coaches, like Didier Deschamps of France, Luiz Felipe Scolari of Brazil, Marcello Lippi of Italy, Vicente del Bosque of Spain or Lionel Scaloni of Argentina, but he has pedigree in African football. The Frenchman took the Eagles of Mali to the last Nations Cup in Cote d’Ivoire, where the team made it to the quarterfinals, losing narrowly to the eventual winner, the Elephants of Cote d’Ivoire 1-2. His team also defeated the Super Eagles in an international friendly in Morocco in March 2024, when it was managed by Finidi George. Chelle’s spell as the head coach of the Eagles of Mali was eventful. Between 2022 and 2024, he played 21 matches with the West African team, won 13, drew 5 and lost 3.
Chelle was born in Ivory Coast to a French father and a Malian mother, and made five appearances for the Eagles of Mali as a centre back (2004-2006). During his football career, he played for many French teams, Martigues, Valenciennes, Lens, Istres, and Chamois Niortais. His coaching career began in France with GS Consolat (2014-2016) as an assistant manager. He went on to coach other French teams as a manager: FC Martigues and Boulogne, before heading for Mali in 2022 as the national team coach. He took charge of the Algerian club side, MC Oran, as the team manager after his spell in Mali. He has added the Super Eagles to the list.
Some ex-internationals have criticized the appointment of the 47-year old as the coach of the Super Eagles. One of them, Kadiri Ikhana, the former Enyimba and Super Falcons coach, said that the NFF ought to have appointed an indigenous coach rather than the Frenchman, whose track records, he said, was not more spectacular than those of some indigenous coaches. According to him, “Eric Chelle is not better than our local coaches. If we don’t give them chances to grow, how will they develop? Many of our coaches have proven themselves locally and internationally, yet they’re ignored.” The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has also weighed into the matter. The association said in a statement that the NFF should appoint an indigenous coach or hire a more accomplished tactician from Europe.
We urge Nigerian football fans to respect the decision of the NFF, which must have done its homework before appointing Chelle to head the Super Eagles. His $50,000 monthly salary is considered affordable by the football federation, considering its budget and priorities. Unlike other foreign coaches operating from abroad, the Malian will be based in Africa, which would afford him the opportunity to discover and nurture new talents for the Super Eagles. Based on his recent performances with the Super Eagles, Augustine Eguavoen ought to have been the best fit for the job. All the same, he is still part of the coaching crew. The last experience with Finidi George as the coach of the national team following the resignation of Jose Peseiro might have informed the NFF decision to hire a foreigner for the job.
The criticisms against Chelle’s appointment might propel him to succeed with the team. The greatest task before the Frenchman is to qualify the Super Eagles for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. On paper, the Super Eagles, which is languishing in the fifth position with three points on the Group C table, is better than all the teams in the group. It is ahead of Rwanda, South Africa, Benin and Lesotho in the group. With six matches yet to be played in the World Cup qualifying campaign, there is still hope for the team. With abundant talents in the team, including the reigning African Footballer of the Year, Ademola Lookman, and his predecessor, Victor Osimhen, Chelle should do everything humanly possible to qualify the team for the next FIFA World Cup.