Former coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Jose Peseiro has given his opinion on what he thinks the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) should look out for as they go in search for a new coach for the team, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.
Peseiro led the team for 22 months taking them to the final of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) where they were beaten 1-2 by the host Cote d’Ivoire. It was Nigeria’s best finish at the tournament since 2013 when they won it.
Despite reaching the target of getting to the semi final of the tournament to trigger an extension, the coach left upon the expiration of his deal in February, and one of his assistants Finidi George was handed the role after holding it in interim capacity.
Finidi’s reign lasted just a little over a month and two games before leaving the role after the poor results in the world cup qualifiers games against South Africa and Benin Republic, where they drew with the former 1-1 at home before losing 1-2 to the latter away from home.
The NFF announced after the games that they will employ an expatriate coach for the team and have since started the search for a new coach , ahead of their return to action in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations Qualifiers.
Peseiro gave a hint on what it takes to be the coach of the team if one wants to succeed at the helm ” I was there for over a year and I can say to succeed with Nigeria you have to understand the players and manage their egos. It can be really explosive at times and also know how to create competition without hurting any of the players”, he said in an interview monitored by our editorial team.
Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman
