NFF, Waldrum face-off unnecessary distraction — Ikhana

Former Super Falcons handler, Coach Kadiri Ikhana, has described as unnecessary, the face-off between the leadership of the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) and Randy Waldrum, the coach of the senior female national football team.

The nine-time African champions will be appearing in their 9th FIFA Women’s World Cup being co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand, and starting on Thursday, July 20.

According to the veteran coach, there is no way the war of attrition between NFF and Waldrum will not have affected the psyche of the girls and the team at large. While blaming the football house for not handling the matter in a mature manner, he admonished Waldrum for not throwing in the towel if he is not satisfied with the condition of service stipulated in his contract.

“If your relationship with your employer is not smooth it will definitely affect the team. They (the NFF) employed the coach and personally, if I am being treated anyhow in any club, I will voice out. When I was coaching, if you treat me the way I don’t like, I will let the public know because football is not a hidden game. It is a game that exposes if a team is good or not. I think the blame comes from the NFF. But at the same time it is not what the coach should have brought to the public.

“If I were him (Waldrum), I will resign because he is still on the job. If you give me what I don’t like and I know I cannot succeed with it, I will give you back your job. All these must have been happening since he took over as coach. Why didn’t he say anything since, why now, because he is going to the World Cup? At the initial stage he would have told them I wouldn’t take this and quit the job,” the 1980 AFCON winner said.

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