NFF Appoints Former Malian Boss, Eric Chelle As Super Eagles Head Coach

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has named Éric Chelle, a former coach of Mali’s senior men’s football team, as the new head coach of the Super Eagles.

Eric Chelle becomes the third person to take charge of Nigeria’s senior national team since Jose Peseiro stepped down in March 2024.

The NFF announced Chelle’s appointment on Tuesday, following an earlier statement by NFF President Ibrahim Gusau hinting that the decision would be finalized soon.

In a statement, the NFF said: “The Executive Committee of the Nigeria Football Federation has endorsed the recommendation of its Technical and Development Sub-Committee for the appointment of Mr. Éric Sékou Chelle as Head Coach of Nigeria’s senior men national football team, Super Eagles.

“At its meeting held in Abuja on Thursday, January 2, 2025, the NFF Technical and Development Sub-Committee had recommended the appointment of the former coach of the senior men national team of Mali as the new head coach of the Super Eagles. This recommendation was on Tuesday, 7th January endorsed by the NFF Executive Committee.”

Gusau said Chelle is set to begin his role immediately, starting with the home-based Super Eagles at the 2024 African Nations Championship (CHAN), which will take place in Tanzania, Kenya, and Uganda from February 1 to 28.

The NFF president emphasized the importance of continuity, stating, “We are all concerned and we want whoever will take charge of the team must start immediately and that is why we also have the policy that it is the same coach that will manage the CHAN Eagles.

“So, you cannot have the opportunity to manage a team comprising of home-based players and at the end of the tournament, you come back to tell us that you don’t see one or two that can be injected into the senior national team.”

Currently, the CHAN Eagles are in camp at the Remo Stars Stadium in Ikenne, under the supervision of interim coaches Daniel Ogunmodede, Fidelis Ilechukwu, and goalkeeper trainer Olatunji Baruwa.

The team successfully qualified for the tournament by defeating Ghana.

Eric Chelle, who earned five caps as a player for Mali’s national team, has coached clubs such as GS Consolat, FC Martigues, Boulogne, and MC Oran.

He took over as head coach of Mali in 2022.

Under his leadership, Mali reached the quarter-finals of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations but narrowly missed out on the semi-finals, losing 2-1 to Ivory Coast in extra time after leading for most of the match.

Chelle’s next major challenge will be steering the Super Eagles toward qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Nigeria is currently fifth in their group, with crucial matches coming up in March.

KanyiDaily recalls that Austin Eguavoen, the Technical Director of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), was previously appointed as interim coach of the Super Eagles.