The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has announced the former coach of Mali Eric Chelle as the new coach of the senior national team of Nigeria ahead of the resumption of the world cup qualifiers, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.
Chelle was the top pick of the technical committee of the NFF from a three man shortlist, with the coach getting the backing of the NFF president Ibrahim Musa Gusau this time around after rejecting his appointment in July last year.
We exclusively reported the appointment of the coach , but in a remarkable twist of events Gusau was said to have vetoed his appointment in favour of a more glamorous option in Herve Renard, who turned his back on the job after talks and contract presentation.
Gusau was disappointed with the decision of the Frenchman and rather than go back to Chelle, he went for German coach Bruno Labbaddia who was announced as the coach by the NFF, but a breakdown in talks over payment of his taxes brought the decision to a premature end.
Austine Eguavoen the technical director of the NFF guided the team successfully through the AFCON qualifiers in interim capacity, and was heavily involved in the process to get a permanent coach which Chelle finally got the mod.
We gathered his optimism on helping the Super Eagles qualify for the world cup despite their precarious position of 5th in their 6 team group played heavily in his favor.
The coach who led Mali to a 2-0 win over Super Eagles in a friendly game in March last year also impressed with his knowledge of the Nigerian team , and explained what he intends to do in order to get them back on track in the world cup qualifiers.
Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman
