Finidi George wishes to emulate Stephen Keshi’s feat

By Oyediji Oluwaseun Babatunde

The interim coach of Nigeria’s senior men’s national team, Finidi George wants to emulate the feat of the Late Stephen Keshi.

Keshi won the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) as a player in 1994 and also claimed the title as a coach in 2013, the last Nigeria coach to win the title.

He was also the only Nigeria coach to win the AFCON as player and coach.

George who took charge of the Super Eagles on an interim basis for the friendly games against Ghana and Mali is looking at becoming Nigeria’s second coach to win the AFCON title as coach and player after winning it it in 1994.

“I would like to emulate Keshi and win the AFCON,” George told www.sportsboom.com

“He won it as a player, and then as a coach which is fantastic. I would like to do the same. The first thing though, is to qualify first.”

George made it obvious that he is not trying to get ahead of himself, and is dreaming of replicating the type of football he learnt from EURO 2008 winning coach Luis Aragones – while as a player at Real Betis and Mallorca – in the Super Eagles.

“I’ve worked with so many coaches,” he continued. “From the late Luis Aragones to [Louis] van Gaal, Guus Hiddink, [Javier] Clemente, [Clemens] Westerhof.

“Over the years, I’ve worked with these coaches, but I think it was the former Spanish coach, Aragones, that impacted me the most.

“Aragones’ way of managing players was fantastic because even those that were not playing were happy to be in the team. It is really difficult for a coach to achieve.”

After a 2-1 win over Ghana and a 2-0 loss to Mali in charge of the three-time African champions, it is now left for the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to decide if George should be given the coaching role permanently or not.

The likes of Emmanuel Amuneke, Michael Nsien, and Ndubuisi Egbo, are interested in the job alongside foreign coaches.

NFF will decide the team’s next coach ahead of their next set of games against South Africa and the Benin Republic during the 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers in June.