In a matter of days, the NFF will announce a new coach for the Super Eagles. The new coach is  to step into the shoes of Jose Passeiro , the man who led the Super Eagles to win the silver medal at the 2023 AFCON held in Cote d'ivoire. Passeiro refused to renegotiate his contract after its expiration.

Passeiro was the 22nd  Foreign Coach that had handled the Super Eagles right from 1949. He was not the best for the Eagles job, but providence took him and the team to the finals of the Africa Cup of Nations in Cote d'iviore. Passeiro was the  48th coach that had managed the Super Eagles who were once known as the Red Devils.

Out of the 22  foreigners that had managed the Eagles, only two  won the AFCON in 1980 (Otto Gloria) & 1994 (Clemence Westerhof). During these periods, there were speedy development in football in the country. The coaches lived in Nigeria, watch our league games, interact with the players and invited them to the national team, and moulded them to become Super stars at their own levels.

Little wondered why Clemence Westerhof also won the AFCON silver and bronze medals, and crowned it all with the first Senior World cup ticket in 1994. Westohof stayed five good years with the Super Eagles.

 Other foreigners like Manfred Horner won silver in 1988, and then Jose Passeiro in Cote d'ivoire 2024.

The Indigenous Coaches who in most cases, come only on intervention missions,  have won the AFCON trophy in 2013 (South Africa) & Silver medal in 1984 (Cote d'iviore). Stephen Keshi who won the AFCON trophy in 2013 was subjected to various levels of intimidation, harassment and frustration until he achieved the feat. He used his personal traits of stubbornness, and doggedness to achieve the feat. Onigbinde who won a silver medal in 1984, survived every type of neglects to get there.

Now, unconfirmed reports had it  over 300 Coaches applied for the vacant position of the Head Coach of the Super Eagles. Same source also told  Box 18 that 5 candidates have been shortlisted  for possible Selection. The Coaches are made up of both foreign and indigenous coaches. 

Those routing for the foreign coaches have maintained that foreigners are hard to influence, they cannot be bribed. They cannot be dictated for, and are very exposed to modern trends and facilities in the game. They have also maintained that such coaches have all the connections needed in the foreign clubs that some Nigerian players are playing in. They  have also argued that the foreigners will always be respected by the players, who also play in foreign clubs.

The proponents of indigenous coaches have maintained  that it is only the indigenous Coaches that understands the country football philosophy of the country, which in most times very unique in its style. They argued  that there are good Nigerian Coaches, both home and abroad. They insisted that these coaches were the ones that groomed these players from infancy and can always understand them better.

Box 18 allign itself with Former President of the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) Fan Ndubuoke who said that he has no issues with the idea of hiring a foreign coach for Super Eagles. But such a coach should have what indigenous coaches don’t have.  According to him, Westerhof succeeded because he was more of a manager than a coach. He knew the hotel arrangements, vehicles for training and other logistics that may not suit  the boys, he took charge. He even had more access to Aso Rock than the administrators . He lived in Nigeria, watched our local league matches, ate our food. He said that Bonfere and Christian Chukwu were more involved with the technical details under his supervision. 

He said that days are gone when any  backyard, and jobless coach from Europe who doesn't have any  pedigree, with relatively unknown in coaching circles in his native country will be lord over Nigerians as Head Coach of the Super Eagles of Nigeria. 

Fan said If the NFF cannot hire a world class coach and the coach cannot live in Nigeria then, the only option left is to employ an indigenous coach. Who will stay around and watch the local league. He  said that most of the indigenous coaches  nurtured to stardom the great players like Kanu Nwankwo, Victor Ikpeba, Celestine Babayaro , Mobi Oparaku, Kelechi Ihenacho, Victor Osimhen and Samuel Chukwueze among others, and should be able to know where to get more of such. We do not need a coach who will stay in a foreign land only to surface few days to an engagement, without contributing any thing to the development of the game in the country. We need a good coach who is vast in the technicalities of the game. We need a coach who will support the steadily development of the country's various leagues. We want a Coach who will be bold to invite a non- league player to the Super Eagles to exhibit his raw talent. Stephen Keshi did it and even invited a Youth corper to camp. This  gave players in the domestic league the zeal to always put in their best. We want a coach that the NFF would also pay his renumerations as at when due. We don't want a coach that will always come in the open to request for his salaries and entitlements. 

Getting the Coach is one thing, it is another thing for Nigerians to give the Coach the needed support, and be patient enough for him to make mistakes and correct them to the beauty of the game.