Having completed a highly-talked-about African Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament in Ivory Coast, Nigeria’s men’s national team, the Super Eagles, have found themselves in a transition period that could swing either side of a pendulum.
In the spotlight of this transition is Finidi George, head coach of Nigerian league champions Enyimba, and a key member of the Nigerian delegation that finished as runners-up at the 2023 AFCON tournament after losing 2-1 in the finals to hosts Ivory Coast.
Following the expiration of Jose Peseiro’s contract with the Super Eagles in March, and the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) announcing that they were looking for a new man to take charge of the three-time African champions, George, who had served as an assistant under Peseiro, was tasked with managing the team on an interim basis.
“When I was told to take charge, it felt really good,” the former Ajax player told SportsBoom while preparing to engage the Super Eagles in training barely two days after leading them to defeat Ghana for the first time since 2006.
“I’m not new to the team, so it wouldn’t take me so long to adapt and try to do new things. I’ve been with the team for almost two years. I know all the players, their strengths, their weaknesses.
“I’m here to serve Nigeria, I’ve been called upon to do that and I will do it to my best capacity, the way I know how to do stuff. I will just take these 2 games and go back to my club. Whatever decision is taken after, so be it. I’m not under pressure to say ‘It must be me.”
Like La Roja, Like Super Eagles?
Considering the Super Eagles’ very-fluid-movement-and-exciting brand of football in their international friendly wins over Ghana, and Mali (a contrast to Nigeria’s rigid defensively-compact style employed at the AFCON), speculation already suggest that the Enyimba head coach might be the best option for a hire, for a cash-strapped Nigerian football governing body.
Already, George, who made it obvious that he is not trying to get ahead of himself, is dreaming of replicating the type of football he learnt from EURO 2008 winning coach Luis Aragones – while as a player at Real Betis and Mallorca – in the Super Eagles.
“I’ve worked with so many coaches,” he responded when asked about his coaching inspiration, “…from the late Luis Aragones to [Louis] van Gaal, Guus Hiddink, [Javier] Clemente, [Clemens] Westerhof.
Over the years, I’ve worked with these coaches, but I think it was the former Spanish coach, Aragones, that impacted me the most.
“Aragones’ way of managing players was fantastic because even those that were not playing were happy to be in the team. It is really difficult for a coach to achieve.
“Now, as a coach, I reflect and see it’s not an easy job, managing a team of 25+ players throughout a season without conflict, it’s fantastic,” George said with a light-hearted smile recollecting how he led Enyimba to their ninth NPFL title in just his second season in the league.
“Coming back to coach in the Nigerian League helped me, all credit to Enyimba. If I had been in Europe, that would be difficult.
“For now, my job is to finish the two games (against Ghana and Mali),” he added.
Finidi’s dream future
Speaking about legacies, George stated that if the NFF gave him the job after his ‘test period’, he would love to walk in the path of Stephen Keshi, the last manager to have had a trophy-laden tenure with the Super Eagles.
“I would like to emulate Keshi and win the AFCON. He won it as a player, and then as a coach which is fantastic. I would like to do the same. The first thing though, is to qualify first.”
While the main rounds of the next AFCON qualifiers might still be a while away from getting underway, the Super Eagles will be required back in action in June when they take on South Africa and Benin Republic in a continuation of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
It is uncertain though, what decisions – whether George continues managing the Super Eagles, or a new head coach gets hired – the NFF will take before then.
