Coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Gernot Rohr is advocating for an identity in the way national teams of Nigeria play which he believe will create a football culture for the country.
The coach who is presently studying the offer of a contract extension from the Nigeria Football Federation ( NFF) said the need to play same way will make it easy for players to progress from one level to another as they are already used to the style of play.
He revealed he was already making progress with the former coach of the women team Tomas Dennerby before the coach left his role as coach. Rohr however said he will continue to work with all national teams to create the identity he thinks the team need in their system and style of play.
“I don’t know now how the NFF will organize it but there must be a good collaboration between us with under-23, with under-20, with the under-1 — and even with the women’s team. I had a good solidarity with the women’s coach before [Thomas Dennerby] but now he is gone.
“This unity [is something] we need to have in our different teams. To go in the same direction, to play with the same philosophy. The philosophy is to play offensive football with good wingers, with quickness with strikers, young players but also experienced players, too.
“We have good players, great players, young players. Now let us have football that plays well with their talent. Let us lay a good foundation from the back, and then go forward quickly to find our wingers. Then I think we have a good chance to go to the World Cup again and do better than the last time.
“We can do also the same for the local team.
“You know they are not playing the Afcon but there is a lot of things to do for them, to get right the playing philosophy the same as the others. But I am not the coach for the local team. The coach was before my assistant, and we had good work together. Now we have to see what happens.”
Ade EmmanuelÂ
