Shaibu Amodu will now coach Nigeria's homegrown players
Shaibu Amodu has been sacked as expected. The Super Eagles were suffering a crisis of confidence in Amodu and even with their third placed finish in the CAN, looked far from self assured.
Jay Jay Okocha reflects a growing consensus that a foreign coach needs to replace Amodu. To this end Ronnie Shehata with his successful tenure as Pharoahs coach was sounded out about taking over. But the problem may not be Amodu as much as a dysfunctional NFF that interferes with every facet of football including player selection.
Be that as it may, Guus Hiddink has proven exemplary in providing short term shock therapy. So it is natural that he is on top of Nigeria's list to replace Amodu.He is also being courted by Turkey but unlike that country, Nigeria is going to the World Cup. The Super Eagles also have extremely talented players but not neccesarily the work ethic and the defensive intensity. Hiddink has an established reputation in these areas. After Russian complacency cost them a World Cup spot, he might be looking to burnish these credentials elsewhere.
An option is yet another Dutchman, Clemens Westerhof, who coached Nigeria to their 1994 Africa Cup of Nations title and to the second round that year in the World Cup. He now works as a administrator of a Nigerian football academy. Most Nigerians see him as their best coach. But Westerhof seems to have grown wary of the corrupt and sectarian nature of Nigerian football and has refused such calls.
Another candidate is Ghana's former coach Ratomir Dujakovic who took that country to the 2006 World Cup and the second round. Others mentioned are Bruno Metsu who coached Senegal to the 2002 World Cup, former England U-21 manager Peter Taylor, and Bayern Munich's Louis Van Gaal.
The rush to foreign coaches is not unanimous as there are others in the Nigeria camp like Lawrence Orairo who believe that Amodu should have been strengthened by adding assistants like Samson Siaisia and Stephen Keshi.
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