Veteran Nigerian defender Kenneth Omeruo has suggested that Super Eagles interim coach Finidi George is not a strong contender to be handed the job permanently.
Nigeria have been without a substantive coach since Jose Peseiro left the post at the end of February following the expiration of his contract.
Peseiro took the West Africans to the final of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON 2024), where they eventually secured a runners-up medal, and his departure, therefore, left a huge void to be filled.
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) subsequently announced that it was accepting applications for the vacant role.
But with the March international break approaching, the NFF appointed George as caretaker coach for the friendlies against Ghana and Mali. The Enyimba FC boss led the Super Eagles to an impressive victory against the Black Stars but couldn’t replicate the success against Mali, who beat Nigeria 2-0.
George’s stock rose when he coached the national team to victory over Ghana but his chances of getting the job plummeted after the defeat to Mali, especially after his side were outplayed and well beaten.
Finidi was short-staffed – Omeruo
Omeruo, who missed the game against Ghana due to injury but was handed a starting role by George in the clash against Mali, believes the 52-year-old did well in the two matches he managed but cast doubt over his prospects of getting the job on a full-time basis.
The 30-year-old said George was short-staffed and cited the NFF’s failure to give him an assistant and an analyst as one of the reasons why he couldn’t get the best out of the team.
Omeruo also appeared to imply that the interim Super Eagles boss did not use the squad at his disposal properly, insisting George should’ve given every player on the roster some game time in the two friendly matches.
Having now played under both Peseiro and George, though, the Kasimpasa defender said he liked the fact that the latter didn’t change much in the team after succeeding the Portuguese.
“I don’t know about everyone, but for me and a few others, he [Finidi] did well. He was short-staffed. Only one coach working as an analyst, training without an assistant,” Omeruo said in an interview with Brila.
“I like that he kept the same system we used at the AFCON. But against Mali, I would have played everyone, give everyone a chance to play, and maybe things would have turned out differently, and he would be a strong contender for the job.”
Omeruo wants coaching issues sorted out before World Cup qualifiers resume
Meanwhile, Omeruo also called on the NFF to sort out the national team’s managerial issues before the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers resume in June.
The Super Eagles are currently third in Group C, where they’re paired against South Africa, Benin, Zimbabwe, Lesotho and Rwanda. Nigeria failed to win any of their first two qualifying matches and are in desperate need of points to reignite their chances of qualification.
With crucial tests against South Africa and Benin coming up in June, it is still uncertain which coach will be leading the Super Eagles into those games. Omeruo believes Nigeria have what it takes to qualify for the World Cup but must first find a permanent coach before the qualifiers resume.
“We started the World Cup qualifiers poorly, and that’s on us as players, but I do believe we have the quality to qualify for the World Cup. But we need to sort out the issue of head coach real quickly because June is just around the corner,” the former Chelsea and Leganes centre-back stated.
Nigeria will host South Africa on June 3 before facing Benin on the road seven days later, as they aim to get their World Cup qualifying campaign back on track.
