The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has set a timeline for the appointment of a new coach for the senior national team of Nigeria, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

Nigeria prosecuted the entire games of the AFCON qualifiers without a substantive coach with Austine Eguavoen the technical director of the NFF taking charge of their successful quest to be at next year’s tournament.

Eguavoen is however expected to return to his role for a new coach, who is expected to be in place before the resumption of the qualifiers for the 2027 World Cup, where the Super Eagles are yet to win a game and sit in 5th position in the 6 team group, four points behind the leaders Rwanda.

We can exclusively report that the NFF have set a deadline for the engagement of a foreign coach, which is the end of January and talks with prospective sponsors who will foot the salary of the coach is progressing nicely.

A shortlist of five coaches will be drawn up by the football house in December, and interviews will be held before they embark on a break for the end of the year festivities. In January a decision will be reached with one of the coaches and terms will be discussed.

The end of January is when the NFF think is enough time to engage a new coach, as it will afford him the chance to draw up a proper plan for the team when they resume their campaign in the word cup qualifiers in March.

Ade Emmanuel

World football governing body FIFA has announced the shortlist of nominees for the 2024 The Best FIFA Football Awards meant to recognize the top performers after a year of women’s and men’s football, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

In a statement on their official website FIFA listed the nominees in various category which compromises of The Best FIFA Men’s Player, The Best FIFA Women’s Player, The Best FIFA Men’s Coach, The Best FIFA Women’s Coach, The Best FIFA Men’s Goalkeeper and The Best FIFA Women’s Goalkeeper.

Two Nigerians in Ademola Lookman and William Troost Ekong were nominated for the Best Men’s 11 which will have a different format of voting this year , with fans now allowed to have their say in who makes the final 11.

They will be able to choose from a list of 77 nominated players – 22 defenders, midfielders and forwards apiece, plus 11 goalkeepers – slotting them into one of several preset tactical formations to build their team. Votes will be weighted equally between fans and an expert panel.

Lookman was nominated in the category of the best attacker, while Ekong made the list of the best defender. Voting is open on FIFA.com until 23:59 CET on Tuesday, 10 December 2024. The rules of allocation for all awards are available at the FIFA Digital Hub.

Both players were rewarded for their outstanding performance for the senior national team of Nigeria at the AFCON, where Ekong captained Nigeria to the final before they were beaten 1-2 by the host Cote d’ Ivoire in the final. He was voted the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the tournament.

His teammate Lookman scored three goals at the tournament, but stole the attention of the world with his hat-trick for Atalanta in the final of the Europa League, which handed them a 3-0 win over Bayer Leverkusen.

Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman

Victor Osimhen’s desire to once again be among the goals for Galatasary in the Europa League was thwarted by a video assistant referee (VAR) check, which deemed his effort on goal as an offside call in their 1-1 draw against Dutch side AZ Alkmaar in the Europa League, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

Osimhen thought he has given his side a late win with his effort in the third minute of stoppage time in the second half , but after a lengthy check my VAR he it was ruled that he scored the goal from an offside position.

As expected he was very furious and disappointed because it robbed him the chance to follow up his brave against Tottenham in the last round of games as he continue to make the best of his loan stint with the Turkish side.

Expected to be sold by Napoli when his loan deal expires in the summer, he has so far found the back of the net nine times in 11 games in all competitions since his move to the team , who are topping the Turkish league and also placed 6th in the Europa League with the current format.

Coach of Italian Serie A side Lazio Marco Baroni has spoken about the qualities of Nigeria international midfielder Fisayo Dele-Bashiru despite his limited game time at the club, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

On loan from Turkish side Hatayspor, the 23 year old has featured sparingly for Lazio this season casting doubts over a possible permanent signing after the expiration of his loan deal.

Earlier today he was an unused substitute in their 0-0 draw against Ludogorets Razgrad in the Europa League despite scoring the third goal in their 3-0 win over Bologna at the weekend in the Italian Serie A. He played for just 5 minutes.

Dele-Bashiru who has five caps for the senior national team of Nigeria with two goals has so far made good use of the minutes he has been given with two goals and two assists in the 8 games he has played in all competitions this season.

Speaking ahead of today’s game in the Europa League, Baroni spoke highly about the former Manchester City youth prospect which made his decision not to play him at all a huge surprise, although the coach did say he has some fitness issues in the build up to the game.

“Dele has a lot of energy, he is a midfielder who can play at all range. He has quality, energy, physical strength and is a growing player. I see him during training, he will be an important player for us. We have to evaluate him, he had a very small problem, today we have 2-3 players that I have to evaluate. If he’s okay, he will play from the start”, he said at the pre match presser.

It appears he didn’t shake off the knock hence his unused substitute role in the 0-0 stalemate, which still kept them on top of the group standings in the Europa League new format with 13 points and a goal difference of 9.

Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman

The head coach of Spanish LaLiga side Real Sociedad Imanol Alguacil has explained the situation of Nigeria international striker Sadiq Umar at the club after his return from international duty with Nigeria, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

Sadiq returned from international duty with Nigeria, where he represented the Super Eagles in the final round of the AFCON qualifiers, sitting out the 1-1 draw against Benin Republic before playing five minutes in the 1-2 defeat at home to Rwanda.

He was expected to play some part for Real Sociedad in their game last weekend against Athletic Bilbao, but he was an unused substitute leading to speculation that he could be on his way out of the club in January.

Reacting to the possible exit of the lanky striker in January due to a lack of playing time , Imanol said his likely exit wasn’t connected to the decision to leave him out, rather it was due to a knock he picked up while on international duty with Nigeria, but had to play the game against Rwanda with it as head coach Austine Eguavoen battled to rescue the team from defeat.

“Well, you know that there are times when I don’t tell you things because I understand that you don’t have to know everything, but since you ask me I’ll answer. It’s very simple. He, in his last game with the national team, only played five minutes because two days before he hurt his hamstring.

“But he played that game( Against Rwanda) because the coach understands that they are losing, knowing that he has discomfort.

“When he got here I told him that he’s called up and that he’s going to play in the Copa Del Rey match and he tells me that he’s not available and he doesn’t train for the next two days.

“So, on Saturday he trains and tells me that he’s available for the derby. So, I take him but knowing that, for me, he’s not completely available and I take him out to warm up,… but more so that he can be more a part of the training than thinking about taking him out’, he explained ahead of today’s Europa League game against Ajax.

Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman

The senior national team of Nigeria have suffered their biggest fall ever in the history of FIFA Ranking after dropping from their last month position of 36th in the world to 44th, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

In the rankings released by the world football governing body after the last round of international games, the Super Eagles dropped to 5th in Africa with Algeria replacing them in 4th position.

Super Eagles drop in the rankings is due to the mixed results they suffered in the final round of games in the AFCON qualifiers, where they forced Benin Republic to a 1-1 draw , before losing 1-2 at home to Rwanda in their final game of the series.

Despite the not too impressive showing, they secured qualification for next year’s AFCON and will now turn to the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers when it resumes in March. They are presently 5th in their group, four points behind the leaders Rwanda.

Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman

28 year old Czech Republic midfielder Patrick Schick is open to a move away from the club in the January transfer window unless he is given assurance that he will keep his spot in the team, even when Victor Boniface is available.

Schick has taken the opportunity to replace the Nigerian who is out injured till probably next year with both hands by smashing a hattrick against Heidenheim in the Bundesliga, and was among the goals in their 5-0 win in the UEFA Champions League.

However he is well aware that he isn’t guaranteed a starting spot when Boniface is available, forcing him into having a rethink on his future at the club he joined in 2020.

According to a report by Sky Sports Germany, Schick already thought about a departure last summer and there were inquiries from Milan and Beşiktaş, but these didn’t work out in the end. Now, the Czech striker is open to leave in January if he receives an offer from a top club. There is interest from Juventus and other Serie A and Premier League clubs are also closely monitoring his situation. Despite all this, Schick is still working hard in training and continues to approach the situation professionally.

From Leverkusen’s perspective, losing the Czech in January is not an option as he’s currently indispensable due to Victor Boniface’s frequent injury issues. They’d have to receive a “top, top, top offer” to let him go and would otherwise only consider a sale next summer.

Daniel Martins

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has made it clear that they are in talks with prospective sponsors who will pick up the bills for a new coach who will likely be a foreigner, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

In a chat just before the tenure of interim coach of the team Austine Eguavoen ended following the conclusion of the qualifiers for the AFCON, the president of the football house Ibrahim Musa Gusau said talks with private establishments over the bills for an incoming foreign coach is on already.

“We are currently in discussion with Dangote Group, BUA, MTN, Baba Ijebu and others on the payment of foreign coach. Though, Eguavoen is doing well, but if we must engage a coach, we must make sure that the issue of payment is sorted. Until last February, the Federal Government did not pay the salary of our former coaches leading to 18-month debt of Jose Peseiro before President Tinubu led government cleared the debt”, he said.

We take a look at five things the new coach will have to do in the event that he gets employed before the resumption of the world cup qualifiers in March, where Nigeria are still searching for their first win and are presently 5th in their six team group behind Rwanda, South Africa and Benin Republic who are all on 7 points, four more than the Super Eagles.

1. Settle For A Back Three – As witnesses at the AFCON, the present setup of the Super Eagles can’t function with a flat back four. Captain William Troost Ekong has not impressed without two other centre backs with him. The same goes for Semi Ajayi, Calvin Bassey and even newly invited Gabriel Osho. All the above mentioned players play in a system with two other centre backs at their various clubs. Settling for it going forward should be heavy on the mind of whoever gets the nod as head coach

2. Pick A Stable Front Three – One area that is yearning for some consistency in the Super Eagles setup is the attack where aside Ademola Lookman and Victor Osimhen, no on else is certain of his position in the team. It’s about time Moses Simon who has the most assist of any player in the history of the senior national team of Nigeria gets a permanent spot as part of a front three at least from the start.

3. Give More Responsibility To Raphael Onyedika- He is the only one who appears to be very comfortable on the ball among the options the Super Eagles have in the defensive midfield role. But he has somehow play second fiddle to others. It’s about time he gets a sure role to break up play and initiate attacks like he does for his Belgian side Club Brugge.

4. Freshen Up The Squad – The likes of Uche Chrisantus at Getafe, Hazmat Ojediran at French Ligue 1 side Lens, Tolu Arokodare of Belgium side Genk need to be given a look in as a reward for their consistent performances this season. Not only will it freshen up the squad, it will also put other players on their toes because it will be a clear message that they can be replaced.

5. Beat Rwanda In Kigali – Anything short of a win over Rwanda in Kigali in March will certainly end any hopes of the team making it to the world cup. A win in Kigali will see them move to one point behind the leaders and surely set them back on track with Benin Republic and South Africa likely to cancel out each other when they meet in the same month of March.

Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman

The coach of the senior national team of South Africa Hugo Broos says he will leave his role if the team fails to qualify for the 2026 world cup, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

In three years as the coach, Broos has revived the status of South Africa men’s team as a top force in Africa leading them to two consecutive AFCON and also to the semi final for the first time since 2020.

72 year old Broos has seen his team lost just one game this year in open play, and that was the AFCON opener defeat to Mali. His team qualified for the AFCON with two games to spare in a group that has Uganda, South Sudan and Congo.

His next target is the world cup qualifiers which resumes in March. South Africa are currently second in their group behind shock leaders Rwanda on goal difference with Benin Republic also on the same amount of points in third place.

Hot favorites Nigeria are 5th in the six team group, four points behind the aforementioned trio and Broos feels his team is in a position where if they fail to make it to the tournament, then he will quit his role.

“You know I’m not stupid, I knew we would qualify [for AFCON],” he said.

“I said [if we don’t qualify for 2026 World Cup I would leave too], but if you compare the team from two years ago and the team now, there’s a difference of day and night in everything.

“In quality, in power, in results, in whatever you say – there’s a big difference and we worked on it to make this team, it was not easy”, he said.

“Certainly in the beginning, nobody understood what I was doing, young players, no players from Chiefs, what is that? Nothing was good. Now we are where we are, and everyone is proud of Bafana Bafana at the moment,” he concluded.

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