‘Super Eagles don’t need a foreign coach’ – Julius Aghahowa disagrees with NFF

Following the resignation of Finidi George as head coach of the Super Eagles, former Nigerian international Julius Aghahowa has openly criticized the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) for its decision to appoint a foreign coach for the Super Eagles.

The decision to replace Finidi comes in the wake of Nigeria’s poor performances in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

The Super Eagles managed a 1-1 draw against South Africa’s Bafana Bafana in Uyo and suffered a 2-1 defeat to Benin Republic in Abidjan.

These results have left Nigeria’s qualification hopes in jeopardy, with the team sitting in fifth place in Group C with just three points from four games. To qualify for the World Cup, Nigeria must win all six remaining matches.

Speaking to Brila FM, Aghahowa expressed his disagreement with the NFF’s decision to appoint a foreign coach. “I think it’s what they want. So, they will usually go for what they want, irrespective of what people will see or people’s opinions, but I feel we have gone past that. Right now, we should be looking inward,” Aghahowa said.

He emphasised the financial constraints faced by the NFF, suggesting that hiring a local coach would be more practical. “First of all, we don’t have money to pay foreign coaches right now. I remember how they struggled in the past,” Aghahowa noted.

Aghahowa, who started his football career with Bendel Insurance and earned 30 caps for the Super Eagles, believes that trusting homegrown coaches could benefit Nigerian football.

He argued that local coaches could foster the inclusion of homegrown players in the national team, thereby enhancing the domestic league. “We should look inward and allow our homegrown coaches to coach the national team. If you look at the national team in the past years, we don’t have the homebased players included in the call-up.

“So, I feel that if we have our homegrown coaches, that should be an opportunity for the homegrown players to be invited to the national team, so we can make our league stronger,” the 42-year-old remarked.”