Sports Minister, NFF rally support for Finidi

Minister of Sports Development, Senator John Owan Enoh, has called for the support of Nigerians and football stakeholders for Finidi George, who was unveiled as head coach of the Super Eagles.

Speaking at the unveiling on Monday at the Media Centre of the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Abuja, the minister expressed confidence in Finidi’s ability to take the Super Eagles to new heights.

While tasking the coach to bring back the liveliness and excitement that Nigerian football is known for, the minister as said Finidi needs the support of all Nigerians for to succeed.

“We have to find a way to continue to carry in everything that we do the popular sentiments of our country, men and women, and that is love for football that pervades everywhere. This ceremony is very symbolic and momentous. This is the first time in several years that the senior national team football coach is unveiled in formal ceremony of this nature.”

President of Nigerian Football Federation (NFF), Ibrahim Musa Gusau, stated that the appointment of Finidi George signalled a new dawn in the history of Nigerian football. He said that his appointment was in line with the clamour of Nigerians for the appointment of an indigenous coach to handle the Super Eagles.

He explained that it was in deference to this yearning that the federation directed the technical team saddled with the responsibility of picking the coach to look inwards and choose an indigenous coach for the national team.

He said as a policy, the NFF gave Finidi George the freehand to choose his technical staff. He emphasised that the assistants will be paid on game-by-game basis to avoid crisis in the payment of their allowances that had bedevilled the process in the past. He also assured that they will be entitled to bonuses and entitlements enjoyed by players and coaches.

“It is important for all of us to rally round him, to support him in whatever way we can for Nigeria to succeed especially on the next task ahead of us which is the qualification for the World Cup as well as qualifiers for the next AFCON and by the grace of God winning it. We narrowly missed it (AFCON title) in Abidjan but by the grace of God we are going to get it in Morocco.

“So it’s time for us to start praying for him (Finidi). After employing him, we discussed within ourselves if we get it as a policy that every coach we employ to handle any of our national teams will be given the opportunity to choose his assistants. And then we talk to the coach that he should pick people that will support you to succeed and that nobody will impose anybody on him. And luckily, Finidi decided to choose about three foreign assistants, two indigenous assistants in the person of Daniel Amokachi and Olatunji Baruwa who will be the goalkeeper trainer. We have Chima Onyeike who is going to be physical trainer, then there is Benjamin James who is going to be an assistant coach.

“We want to avoid any issue of having conflict in the area of paying coaches. For the coach, we are going to agree on how to pay him monthly but for every other assistants, we are engaging them on invitational basis. Whatever we are doing, once we invite you for a match, for a qualifier or for a tournament, this is how we are going to pay you including other allowances that the team is entitled to. All these are just avoid conflict in the area of payment of salaries.

“We are going to support Finidi and give him all he needed to work and the issue of paying salary will not be a problem by the grace of God. We are going to do our best to make sure that we support him.

Finidi, while thanking the NFF and Nigerians for his appointment, promised to put in his best in the task of lifting Nigerian football to the next level. He promised to improve on his relationship with the players for better performance as well as adding value to his work. He added that for players to be selected, he must show commitment and be a regular in his club.

“For selection of players, you have to be in a club and you must have that commitment. We all say the national pledge and that is it. For me, it is Nigeria first and that is the same commitment a and loyalty we want from each and every player that is invited and of you can do that, we are good to go.”