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Bruno Labbadia [Credit: X | #thenff]
BRUNO Labbadia, the newly appointed Super Eagles head coach, assumes office at a desperately disappointing time for Nigeria’s men’s national football team. After an inexplicably long hiatus following the resignation of Finidi George in June, the Nigeria Football Federation named the German gaffer as manager on Tuesday.
Uneasy lies the head that wears the Eagles’ crown. Labbadia is straight into the battlefront with two crucial 2025 African Cup of Nations qualifiers against Benin Republic and Rwanda next week. If he forges a bright start, the teeming fans of the Eagles might be charitable enough to erase the recent sins of the NFF and the Ministry of Sports from their minds.
Labbadia’s appointment was greeted with relief and surprise. He is the third coach of the Eagles in 2024. Jose Peseiro managed Nigeria up to AFCON 2023. Nigerian George replaced him in a brief spell, and now Labbadia. There had been speculations the football house discussed with other coaches. A former Bayern Munich player, the German’s pedigree included stints at Bayer Leverkusen, Darmstadt, and Stuttgart.
However, the details of the appointment are sketchy, especially the duration of the contract, and the remuneration package. In the modern age, the NFF, led by its president, Ibrahim Gusau, falls short in transparency.
Critics point to the German’s lack of experience on the international stage. That might not count against him if he gives the Eagles a new lease of life.
Apart from building a genuine team spirit, Labbadia has two major assignments. First, steer Nigeria to qualify for AFCON 2025. The qualifiers begin on September 7 against Benin Republic. Three days later, the Eagles confront Rwanda in Kigali. At this point, this is a tough start.
For the first time, Nigeria lost a competitive match to Benin in June in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. The game was played at a neutral venue in Ivory Coast. Incidentally, Nigeria are in the same World Cup qualifying group as Rwanda, who top the table with seven points from four matches.
The Eagles finished second behind Ivory Coast in AFCON 2023. Since then, the Eagles have been exposed. It is now five matches without a victory for the three-time African champions.
In these circumstances, the second major task before Labbadia is to qualify the Eagles for the 2026 World Cup. It is almost an impossible task. With three points, Nigeria are fifth in the group. They had three straight draws against Lesotho, Zimbabwe, and South Africa and lost to the Benin Republic in the fourth round. Only the group winners are guaranteed a slot in the 2026 Finals.
After their debut in USA ’94, the Eagles have missed only two World Cups – Germany 2006 and Qatar 2022. They are now in danger of missing consecutive finals for the first time. Indeed, it will take a special magic to snatch the sole ticket from the qualifying group ahead of Rwanda or South Africa.
In truth, Labbadia’s appointment is not a cure-all for the ills of Nigerian football. Administratively, there is confusion and incompetence. Coaches are owed salaries, and the same for the players. The minister interferes arrogantly in NFF affairs.
The domestic championship is in disarray. The best players from there are struggling in average teams in Europe. The time between Labbadia’s appointment and the AFCON qualifiers is short. Appointing coaches from different footballing ideologies deepens the woes of the Eagles.
So, the fans, the NFF, and other stakeholders should be realistic about their expectations. The NFF should be transparent, executing a long-term plan to bring the Eagles out of their rot. There should be another scheme to comprehensively revive the domestic league.
