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JANUARY 29, 2007 VOL. 20. NO 16

A Return to the Past

**Super Eagles**

After a nine-year lull, Nigeria is, once again, saddled with a foreign technical adviser as Germany’s Berti Vogts lands the Super Eagles’ top job
By Chidiebere Onyemaizu
Nine years after a seeming break with foreigners at the driving seat of the coaching crew of the country’s National football team, former national coach of Germany, Berti Vogts has been hired by the Nigerian Football Association (NFA) as Super Eagles’ new technical adviser.
The hiring of Vogts is the climax of more than three y ears of often rancorous debate as to the desirability, or otherwise of a foreign coach for the Super Eagles. The debate was most pronounced during the controversial reign of Ibrahim Galadima as NFA chairman.
Prior to the hiring of Vogts, a plethora of foreign coaches allegedly being considered for the post were freely bandied by football analysts. Among names that featured prominently were those of Arsene Wenger, coach of high profile English clubside, Arsenal and Super Eagles’ former technical adviser, Clemence Westerhof. However in a chat with Westerhof in Ilorin last September, the Dutchman told The Source that he was not interested in taking Austin Eguavoen’s job but maintained that he was ever ready to render assistance in whatever capacity the NFA wanted him to so as to help Nigerian football grow.
Signs that Vogts would eventually clinch the Eagles’ job emerged last week when NFA Chairman, Sani Lulu, in the company of the association’s head of technical committee, Taiwo Ogunjobi, travelled to London to hold talks with the new Super Eagles handler.
Vogts, 60, coached Germany from 1990 to 1998, in the process shepherding the country to victory in the 1996 European title. During his days as a football striker, Vogts was part of the 1974 world cup winning German squad.
Notedly, Nigeria over the past four decades has relied more on foreign coaches as the national team’s chief handlers.
For example, between 1956 and 1960, Les Courtier and Eric Jones, both from England held forte. From 1960 to 1961, it was the turn of Israel’s Berth Haileri. In the same year, 1961, Hungary’s George Vagu came on board. Brazil had its shot when Jorge Pena was on the saddle from 1963. Between 1965 and 1968, Hungary made a dramatic come-back via Josef Ember while Spain’s Sabino Barinaga was on the saddle from 1968 to 1969.
After the Nigerian civil war in 1970, German’s Heinz Maroztke arrived to take charge of the national team. He did not however, last long as he left in 1971.
In 1974, another German, Othman Goader, came on board but like his compatriot, Muroztke, Goader did not stay long enough on the job. He was succeeded the same year by Buba Mihnilori from the defunct Yugoslavia
Jelisa Vivic Tinnier Tiko was to take over from Mihailovi. He was in charge till 1975 when Brazil, through Otto Gloria who won for the country a second African Nations Cup in 1980, had a second chance between 1980 and 1982.
The period between 1982 and 1988 saw the return of the Germans as the national team’s technical advisers. First, it was Gotllier Goller in 1982 and then Manfred Honoer who held forte till 1988. From 1989, the Netherlands had the first feel of the plum job via the emergence of Westerhof. As it were, Westerhof was to led Nigeria to its first ever World Cup appearance, the USA ’94. He, however, dramatically abandoned the team immediately after the Super Eagle’s ouster from the World Cup.
Westerhof’s assistant and kinsman, Bonfrere Jo in 1995 picked up the mantle and led the country to its first ever impressive Olympic outing in soccer, at the 1996 Atlanta games. It is instructive that Nigeria won gold for soccer in the tournament, defeating notable soccer giants like Brazil and Argentina. But just like Westerhof, Bonfrere abandoned Nigeria unceremoniously after the tournament.
A French man, Philipe Troussier, berthed on the scene in 1997 but spent barely two years on the saddle as he was replaced by a Yugoslav, Bora Milutinovic who was signed on in January 1998. Milutinovic took Nigeria to the France ’98 World Cup, where the country had one of its worst soccer outings. Apparently unsure of the kind of the reception that awaited him back home (in Nigeria), Milutinovic towed Westerhof’s line: he never returned to Nigeria with the team.
Remarkably, rancour had often characterised some of the past foreign technical advisers’ relationship with the country’s football authorities. For example, it is on record that Westerhof had a running battle with Jim Nwobodo who was sports minister at the the time he (Westerhof) was in charge of the national team.
In the same vein, Troussier had a cold relationship with Monday Sinclair, who at the time the Frenchman tutored Eagles as technical adviser was the national team’s chief coach. Troussier never hid his contempt for the prefix of “Chief Coach” attached to Sinclair’s name. He made it known, at any given opportunity, that he, Troussier was the boss. In fact, he once, at the height of the raging feud, outlined what to him was Sinclair’s role in the Super Eagles coaching crew in this words:
“He is working with me.
He represents me for the pre-match meetings.
He represent the NFA outside the country.
He organises the report for each training.”
Already, Vogts’ emergence as the Eagles’ new technical adviser has been generating diverse reactions from stakeholders in the sector.
John Fashanu, a former NFA board member, described the choice of Vogt as a “huge mistake” because according to him, Vogts does not have what it takes to take Nigerian football to a greater height.
His words: “You cannot employ someone who has continued to fail since 1997; he failed with Germany at the 1998 World Cup. He failed with Scotland.”
Former international soccer star, Segun Odegbami, also argued along the same line. Hear him: “His choice is not convincing because he did not enjoy a successful stint with Scotland.”
Super Eagles striker, Nwankwo Kanu, however, thinks differently. For him, Vogt was the right choice. Kanu: “He is a coach we all respect and I have no doubt that he will succeed with this team”.
Super Eagles coach, Eguavoen on his part has pledged readiness to work with Vogt. Eguavoen: “I will certainly work with him and I look forward to a good working relationship with him for meaningful results.”
Vogt is expected to begin work in March.