“Eric Chelle is not the right person” – Ex-Nigeria defender slams NFF over Malian’s appointment

By Wale Mustapha

Former Nigerian defender, Sam Elijah, has criticized the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) for their decision to appoint Eric Chelle as the new head coach of the Super Eagles.

On Tuesday, the NFF officially endorsed the recommendation of its Technical and Development Sub-Committee to appoint the Malian coach as the Super Eagles’ new head tactician.

Chelle is expected to arrive in Nigeria on Sunday to sign his contract, after which he will lead the Super Eagles in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Rwanda and Zimbabwe in March 2025.

Chelle’s appointment has sparked mixed reactions across the country, with the NFF expressing optimism about his credentials and potential.

However, Elijah is one of many who believe that Chelle’s appointment is a poor decision and a slap in the face to Nigerian coaches, urging the NFF to reconsider their choice.

“I don’t think this is the right appointment. We have a local coach, Austin Eguavoen, who has done well in our past matches. He came in and redeemed the team,” Elijah told allnigeriasoccer.com.

“Now, they have been canvassing for a foreign coach all this while. I don’t know what the NFF is looking for. For me, bringing Eric Chelle to take over the national team is a slap on our football.”

Elijah went further to state that Chelle is not the right fit for the national team, suggesting that the NFF should have stuck with local coaches.

“Eric Chelle is not the right appointment, he is not the right person for us. We should stick to our local coaches. Austin Eguavoen has the pedigree, he has what it takes. The boys trust him, and they have confidence in him. When he came in, the boys were ready to play for him, and they were doing well,” Elijah added.

The former Super Eagles defender also raised concerns over the timing of the appointment, given that the World Cup qualifiers are fast approaching.

He emphasized that a new coach would need time to establish his methods and build rapport with the team—something that might be difficult with such a short time frame before critical matches.

With the clock ticking toward the qualifiers, Elijah believes that sticking with a coach who has earned the players’ trust, like Eguavoen, would have been the wiser decision.

Samuel Ahmadu

Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. He began his career at Goal.com in February 2014, where he served as an African women's football correspondent for nearly eight years. During his tenure at Goal.com, Samuel covered major events such as three Women's Africa Cup of Nations (2016, 2018, 2022) and the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada plus 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. His work at Goal.com earned him widespread acclaim, particularly for his in-depth profiles of African football stars, notably Asisat Oshoala, whose rise he documented from her early years to her breakthrough at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2014. Prior to his role at Goal.com, Samuel freelanced for various print and broadcast media outlets in Nigeria, including Graphics Newspaper, Radio Nigeria, Grace FM, and Savid Newspaper. His extensive experience and expertise led to his appointment to the Nigeria Football Federation's Standing Committee on Women's Football Development from 2016 to 2018. Since February 2018, Samuel has been the Social Media Manager for Nigeria's women's national teams.In 2019, Samuel joined the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as a women's football content contributor and was promoted to Women's Football Editor in 2021. His contributions to women's football continued as he worked as a Media Consultant for Content Creation and Editorials at the 2022 CAF Women's Champions League. Currently, Samuel also serves as the spokesman for the Nigeria Women Football League, further solidifying his influence and dedication to the growth of women's football in Africa.

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