1980 Africa Cup of Nations winner Segun Odegbami has applauded the appointment of Finidi George as the new Super Eagles head coach while name-dropping the ideal assistant for the former Ajax winger, Soccernet.ng reports.
A consistent advocate for local coaches handling the national teams, Odegbami is convinced that Finidi is a perfect fit to be Jose Peseiro’s assistant.
In his weekly column in the Vanguard, Odegbami wrote:
“So, with joy in my heart, I welcome Finidi George, a fine gentleman, a respected and vastly experienced ex-international football player trained by foreign coaches.
“These are invaluable qualities that can’t be bought in the marketplace. He has been to the mountaintop of success several times and can, therefore, guide the National team there again and even beyond!
“Finidi acquired the highest coaching certificates and worked as an assistant to the last White coach. So, he, like several of his colleagues of the 1994 generation, is ready!
“Now, he brings all of that and adds to them what foreign coaches would never have in a million years – the deep knowledge of domestic Nigerian football, understanding the psyche of Nigerian players and their football culture of all-out ‘attacking football’ driven by unique skills honed on the bad training grounds all over the country.
“When you add to these the organizational knowledge found in European football, a good Nigerian as coach can breed the best players ready to play anywhere in the world without fear or intimidation. That’s what is in prospect for Nigeria as Finidi mounts the saddle.”
However, there is the little matter of who should be Finidi’s assistant coach that is yet unattended to.
The Nigeria Football Federation left out that part when announcing Finidi’s appointment, and it has started to dominate the conversations in the country.
Reports suggest that the NFF is considering picking one of Finidi’s former international teammates, Daniel Amokachi or Emmanuel Amunike, for the role.
However, former Super Eagles defender Ifeanyi Udeze believes such a move would be counterproductive as Amokachi and Amunike also contested for the Super Eagles coaching job before losing out to Finidi.
Odegbami has toed a similar line, revealing that Sylvanus Okpala has the right temperament, qualifications, and experience to complement Finidi.
“He (Finidi) must not embark on this journey alone and must have assistants that will add value to the technical team,” Odegbami added.
“In my opinion that I know will be vehemently opposed to by several journalists, particularly, is Sylvanus Okpala.
“Largely under-rated by those who can’t see beneath his seeming brashness and loudness, ‘Quicksilver’ packs unique, deep technical knowledge of football that can complement Finidi’s calmness and intelligence.”
Finidi’s first task as head coach is guiding Nigeria to face South Africa on June 3 in a matchday three fixture of the 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign.