The Super Falcons of Nigeria will need to be at the top of their game against the Ethiopian Women National football team, as they seek to keep alive their 2024 Olympic dream.
Victory for the World Cup Quarter finalists, will take Nigeria one step closer to the World’s biggest Sports Fiesta, a competition they failed to attend in Tokyo Japan, four years ago.
To do that, the girls will be without their US born tactician whose romance with the Nigeria football federation came to the point of break-up, with barely a few days to the Women’s World Cup which took place earlier this year in Australia/New Zealand.
It will be recalled, that Waldrum went dirty on local and international media, attacking his employers by calling them names and the NFF responded by describing the American as the worst national team coach to ever manage the Super Falcons.
Coincidentally, the Super Falcons rose to the ocassion at the World Cup, defeating Women’s football Super powers like Canada and Australia on their way to the Quarter finals where they bowed out to eventual finalists, England.
After the World Cup, Waldrum and his employers agreed that both parties will have to wait till the expiration of his current contract before taking a decision on whether to renew or terminate.
Feelers from the football Fédération has it that apart from the NFF president Ibrahim Gusau who seem to have a soft spot for Waldrum, other board members, chieftains of the NFF technical Committee and technical department, have resolved that this is the right time to relieve the 66-year old American of his 10,000 dollars monthly job.
Many have not forgiven the coach for all his negative media rants against the federation prior to the team’s departure to Australia/New Zealand for the Women’s World Cup.
Secondly, the NFF technical Committee contacted Waldrum two weeks before the Olympic Qualifier with Lucy of Ethiopia, asking for his team’s match programme and list of invited players but all they got from the coach is that he won’t be available to thinker the team as he will need time off, to attend to his sick wife who will be undergoing surgery about thesame time the Falcons will be getting ready to play the match with Ethiopia.
Nigerian born Justin Madugu guided the team to a 1-1 draw in Addis Ababa and will be incharge, when the Super Falcons file out for the return leg against their Ethiopian counterparts on Tuesday October 31, at the Moshood Abiola international Stadium, in Abuja.
Based on the agreement between the Nigeria football federation and Waldrum, signed in February 2021, the American put pen to a two year contract that will expire after Tuesday’s match with Ethiopia a match he never showed up for.
By the content of the agreement reached between both parties, Random has already breached a part of the contract by going to the media to tarnish the image of his employers and has done even more havoc with his failure to show up for the games with Ethiopia.
A member of the NFF technical Committee who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the committee has recieved pictures and video footages of Waldrum working on the sidelines with University of Pittsburgh, thesame team he was coaching before accepting the Super Falcons job.
“I am not saying his wife is not sick, I doubt if any man will want to lie with the health of his wife. What I am saying, is that, we have evidences of him (Waldrum) passing instructions to players of University of Pittsburgh in two recent matches. I hope he will be bold enough to defend himself when these facts are presented before him the official said”
A win for the Super Falcons will see them qualify for the next round of the Olympic Qualifier where they will tackle the winner of the tie between Cameroon and Uganda.
Adewale Ajayi
