The continuing search for Amodu’s successor

In 2001, Shaibu Amodu qualified the Super Eagles for the Korea-Japan 2002 FIFA World Cup. It was a monumental achievement for the coach as he became the first Nigerian coach to do so.

The honour of leading the team to the tournament, however, fell on Adegboye Onigbinde, who was brought in as coach, following Amodu’s sack as a result of the Eagles’ third-place finish at the 2002 African Cup of Nations in Mali.

At that time, it was a cruel blow for Amodu, and providence appeared to back him over his “unjust” dismissal, as the Super Eagles for the first time in three World Cup appearances, failed to advance beyond the first round, losing all but one of their three matches at the 2002 mundial.

Last weekend, Amodu repeated history by securing a place at next year’s World Cup for the Super Eagles, but it appears he may once again not get to lead the team to the tournament as there are clear signs that the authorities are on the lookout for a new coach, this time a foreigner, to lead the Super Eagles to the World Cup.

Whether that will happen before January’s African Cup of Nations remains uncertain but if the authorities intend on going ahead with it, those in support say the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) had better hasten up, if they do not want a re-enactment of the Korea-Japan episode, which was blamed on the fact that Onigbinde had slightly over three months to prepare the side for the World Cup.

Tactical lapses

South Africa 2010 is still seven months away, which is a sufficient time for any incoming coach to transform a Super Eagles side with a great deal of potential into a formidable team, devoid of the tactical lapses that some observers believe have been its hallmark under Amodu.

Amodu’s critics believe that though the Eagles haven’t lost a competitive fixture since he took over from Berti Vogts, there is no guarantee that the reverse won’t be the case by the time the team gets to South Africa, given that football at the level of the World Cup is almost entirely based on tactics and the level of preparation put in by teams prior to a championship.

Unlike club football, they insist, it is not so much about the quality of players in the team, but mostly about what the coach can reproduce against his counterpart on each match-day that determines the outcome of a match.

“The quality of coaching matters a lot in international football,” said Emmanuel Amuneke, a former member of the Super Eagles. “It is often the difference between success and failure at tournaments.

“Matches are usually won from the bench, so it is to a team’s advantage if they have a strong bench. Our team may not have played the type of football fans want to see but it’s all about the results. And if that is the case then there isn’t any reason to sack Amodu,” added Amuneke whose views were supported by England-based coach Chukwuma Akuneto.

“Amodu’s mandate was to qualify the team for the World Cup and he has done that, but if they don’t want him to take the team to South Africa then they should come out and tell us why,” demanded Akuneto.

Shortlist

A couple of names have already been touted as potential replacements but one name that stands out is Guus Hiddink, who last Wednesday failed to take Russia to the World Cup but has enjoyed varying degrees of success at World Cup finals with Holland, Australia and South Korea. His contract with the Russian FA doesn’t run out until July 2010 but the 63-year-old is still tight-lipped regarding his immediate future but nothing really stands in the way of the Nigerian authorities from buying out the remainder of his contract with the Russians or re-enacting what Chelsea did earlier this year.

Even Ireland coach, Giovanni Trapattoni could be approached to oversee the team for the period covering Angola and South Africa 2010 as he has proven with an Irish side made up of many average players, some of them playing in the English lower league that you don’t need established players to compete favourably against established teams.

No wonder the Irish extended his current deal to 2012.

But it appears there’s little chance of Hiddink or Trapattoni living in Nigeria as they would favour working out of Europe, while the likes of Marco van Basten, Juergen Klinsmann and Fatih Terim, former Turkey coach, all presently unemployed, could be convinced to live in Nigeria because what the team doesn’t need is a coach who will spend most of the time traversing Europe like Vogts did, or a coach who would be brought in a few weeks to the tourney like Bora Milutinovic.

Hiddink

“Hiddink is definitely my first choice if they really want to get rid of Amodu because of all the coaches mentioned, he has the most experience and has a good grasp of the English language,” continued Akuneto. “But there is no way he will stay in Nigeria as I feel he will prefer to stay in Europe and do his job.” Amuneke, although not in favour of Amodu’s sack, feels the authorities should go for a coach who will be ready to reside in Nigeria and get down to the nitty-gritty of raising a formidable team, not just for the World Cup but also for the period following the tournament; a coach who will be able to spot a potential Super Eagles star from the domestic game as well as from some obscure foreign league as a certain Clemens Westerhof did so many years ago.

But if short-term success is all the authorities are interested in, then Hiddink and Trapattoni or any other high profile club coach in Europe may suffice for the World Cup. There is however no guarantee, in the opinion of Amuneke and Akuneto, that such a move will not lead to a disaster reminiscent of what happened at France ‘98 where the Eagles were disgraced out of the World Cup by an organized Danish side.