Rivers United coach wants NPFL calendar to rhyme with CAF calendar

Head coach of Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) Champions, Rivers United’s Stanley Eguma is begging the football authorities; the NFF, and the Interim Management Committee (IMC) to get the NPFL calendar right.

Eguma has been a constant name in the coaching seat in the NPFL for more than a decade, started his coaching career in 2008 as an assistant with Dolphins FC of Port Harcourt and finally guided Rivers to the title in 2022.

And the tactician has admonished the football authorities to let the league calendar run side by side with that of Confederation of African Football (CAF) as he set his side on defend the league title with the Pride of Rivers.

“The NPFL is that not currently on is affecting our teams in the continent. Kwara United, Remo Stars, and Plateau United are all out of the CAF Champions League and Confederation Cup,” Eguma told Brilla FM.

“We are not adequately prepared like other teams in the continent. The league not being on at the moment is a minus to us. This anomaly should be corrected and the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) should look into it.”

Rivers United and Plateau United qualified for the 2022/2023 CAF Champions League after finishing first and second positions respectively at the end of the 2021/2022 NPFL season in July.

Remo Stars and Kwara United represented Nigeria at the CAF Confederation Cup but Rivers United remains Nigeria’s sole representative on the continent after the ouster of Plateau United, Remo Stars, and Kwara United.

The 2022/2023 NPFL season is yet to start but the Chairman of IMC, Honourable Gbenga Elegbeleye has promised that the league will start this year.

A date is yet to be officially announced for the kick-off of the league season.