Super Eagles head coach Eric Sekhou Chelle has revealed the four most important conditions he looks out for when assessing players ahead of selection for the Nigeria national team, Footynaija.com reports.
Eric Chelle was appointed head coach of the Super Eagles at the start of this year, and was charged with the responsibility of rescuing Nigeria’s World Cup dreams following a disappointing start to the qualifying campaign.
So far, the Franco-Malian has done a decent job at the helm, overseeing Nigeria’s first win of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign and maintaining an unbeaten start to his managerial reign after five games (2W, 3D).
From what has been seen of Eric Chelle’s Super Eagles up until now, the former Mali boss favours the 4-4-2 formation. This tactical set-up is geared towards dominating opposing teams in the middle of the park and ultimately controlling the game.
The successful execution of this tactical setup requires specific types of players that meet certain important criteria. For Eric Chelle, these criteria include fitness, tactical intelligence, technical prowess and mental astuteness.
What Eric Chelle said
“First of all, you need to have playing time. You need to be in top physical shape and you need to be good too. And then, the last thing is tactically,” the Super Eagles boss told Onze Mondial.
“Can you get into the coach’s system of play? As a coach, you don’t have time. When I took over the Nigerian national team, I only had two sessions before the match. So, in two training sessions, I have to be able to quickly get the message across and what I want for my team.
“Physically, the player has to be in shape. He also has to be tactically intelligent to be ready to understand and apply my instructions. You also need good technical quality. And finally, you have to be mentally ready; international matches aren’t easy.”
Eric Chelle and the Super Eagles still have a huge mountain to climb in the World Cup qualification campaign. September’s qualifiers against South Africa and Rwanda must be won to keep even the tiniest bit of hope alive.