You will succeed, NFF president tells Finidi George

Nigerian Football Federation President, Ibrahim Gusau, has promised to support the newly appointed coach of the Super Eagles Finidi George.

The NFF appointed Finidi George as the head coach of the Super Eagles on Monday, April 29, two months after the contract of Portuguese coach, Jose Peseiro expired on February 29.

Reports claimed that Finidi George who could continue in his role as the technical adviser of Enyimba of Aba, signed a one-year contract with the NFF which comes with a year extension option.

Initially, there were reports that the NFF was considering signing a foreign tactician but the announcement from the federal government that it would be responsible for the payment of coaches’ salaries reportedly made the federation look inward.

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Yet, it was looking like Finidi George who had served as the assistant coach of the Super Eagles for 20 months and also the interim coach of the team in March, won’t be appointed for the job. His former teammate in the national team, Emmanuel Amuneke, was seen as the favourite. However, the 53-year-old former Ajax player prevailed.

“It wasn’t an easy decision,” Gusau told former Super Eagles media officer Toyin Ibitoye during an interview.

“We’ve to begin to trust our own. We will give Finidi all the respect and support he needs.”

Finidi George’s next point of action is to prepare the Super Eagles for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification games against South Africa in Uyo on June 3, and against Benin Republic in Abidjan on June 10.