Segun Odegbami tells NFF who to appoint as Super Eagles coach

Former Nigeria international, Segun Odegbami, has urged the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to consider appointing an indigenous coach to lead the Super Eagles, following the departure of Jose Peseiro.

Odegbami made this passionate appeal in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday in Lagos, emphasizing the need for Nigeria to break away from a “colonial mentality” that suggests only foreign coaches can lead the national team to success.

He highlighted the wealth of Nigerian talent across various fields and the need to tap into this pool of expertise, stating, “Unless we want to be enslaved forever, in our colonial mentality where we think that only the white can coach us to success.”

The departure of Peseiro, as acknowledged in his farewell message on his official handle, has left the position of Super Eagles coach vacant. This has led to speculations linking names like Emmanuel Amuneke, Sunday Oliseh, and Augustine Eguavoen to the role.

Expressing his views on the matter, Odegbami emphasized the simplicity of football as a game and the qualifications of Nigerian coaches to excel at the highest levels. He stated, “Football is not a rocket science, but a simple game, we have lots of Nigerians who have all the qualifications to take us to any level.”

Asserting his stance, Odegbami insisted, “For me, I won’t suffer from colonial mentality again and enough of foreign coaches, now, it’s time for a Nigerian Coach to handle our national team.”

Regarding Peseiro’s departure, Odegbami clarified, “Peseiro did not resign as the story is being peddled, his contract ended and it was not renewed, end of story.”