NFF Right Of Reply : We Did Not Appoint Unqualified Coaches For National Teams

The Nigeria Football Federation has decried a publication which claimed its chieftains had not only handpicked coaches for the U15 National Team, but had also gone ahead to ‘share coaching positions in the various National Teams among their friends and cronies.’

Chairman of the NFF Technical and Development Committee, Barrister Chris Green, frowned at the said report, saying that at no time of recent had any member of the NFF Executive Committee or Management forwarded names of coaches to him as an individual, or the Technical and Development Committee as a body, for employment into any of the National Teams.

“At the last meeting of the NFF Technical and Development Committee, a decision was taken to advertise the coaching positions in the U17 men and women National Teams, U20 men and women National Teams, the U23 men’s team and the Senior Women National Team (Super Falcons). A public notice to that effect has been prepared and will be published in two national newspapers in a matter of days.

“As for the U15 National Team, that team and the U13 National Team are NOT full National Teams in the real and active sense of the word, as they do not participate in any FIFA, CAF or WAFU competitions. They are GRASSROOTS projects for the discovery of talents into the main National Teams.”

Green said the Technical and Development Committee decided at its last meeting to empanel a number of coaches to take charge of the U15 National Team for an upcoming tour of Morocco, where the team will play a couple of friendly matches.

“As part of a recent agreement between the NFF and the Federation Royal Marocaine de Football, the U15 boys were invited for a couple of games with the Morocco U15 team in the framework of youth development initiative. The persons so appointed are well aware they are to take charge of only the tour of Morocco. Nothing has been decided on permanent basis. They were also not appointed by either the NFF President or a Board Member as the report claimed.

“We have stated clearly the eligibility guidelines for the coaches to be appointed into the various National Teams and oral, written and practical interviews will be conducted to select the best. It is not an exercise that would be undertaken in secrecy.”

Ifeanyi Emmanuel