Sodje Lampoons NFF over influx of foreign coaches and assistants
Former international Sam Sodje has taken a swipe at Nigeria Football federation over what he dubbed complete takeover of the Senior national football team by foreign coaches. The takeover according to him does not only limit the chances of local coaches to call the shots but also encourages stagnation in the system.
He recalled that Dutch man Clemence Westerhof had just one foreign assistant when he led the super Eagles noting that the current scenario looks like relegation of local coaches.
He accused the NFF of deceiving the public claiming it does not have money but spending a fortune on foreign coaches. As if putting the achievement made by Super Eagles coach Gernot Rohr since his arrival on the scale, the former Reading defender concluded that not much impact has been made.
“I am worried that in the Super Eagles team we have about five foreign coaches working with Gernot Rohr. This is slavery,” said Sodje, as quoted by All Africa.
“When [Clemens] Westerhof was the Eagles coach, he only had one assistant. I see no reason the Nigerian team will have more foreign assistants when there are a lot of top coaches in Nigeria who don’t have jobs.
“The NFF claims they don’t have money, but they can afford to pay these expatriate coaches with foreign currencies, while abandoning the domestic ones.
“The foreign coaches’ impact has not been felt since Rohr took charge of the team. How can Nigerian coaches grow?
“The foreign coaches working in Nigeria collect the money and leave the country with nothing to show for it.”
Sodje adds that the influx of the foreign coaches has not given Nigeria a playing pattern.
“In modern coaching, a team must be known for a pattern. What I think the Eagles need now is to have a solid defence. A good defensive coach will solve this problem.
If you have a good defence and an organised attack, your team will excel,” explained the 39-year-old who made four appearances for the Super Eagles between 2005 and 2009 featuring mostly in friendly matches but making competitive debut in the 3-0 defeat of Harambee Stars in the qualifiers ahead of the 2010 World cup in South Africa under late Shuaibu Amodu.
While Sodje’s lamentation centers mainly on the composition of coaches in the super Eagles the Super Falcons technical crew equally has its own share of the structure.
A source in the Glass House who does not want to be named said the Glass House is only desirous of getting result and will not be dragged into the foreign coach versus local coach brouhaha. “What the country needs is impressive result, end of story”
While Rohr may have achieved result by qualifying the Eagles for the Nations Cup in Egypt and Thomas Dennerby may have done so by qualifying Falcons for the World cup in France, some say the real result will be assessed by how far they go in both tournaments billed for June this year.