Paul Bassey, a member of the committee, had told newsmen yesterday that Paul Le Guen had been picked by NFF to become the new Technical Advicer of the Super Eagles.
Barely 24 hours after the announcement, Le Guen has said through his representatives that he has not reached any terms with the NFF to lead the super Eagles.
Now, the NFF has come out to say they never said he was the new coach but rater said, he could be the new coach only if he agrees to live in Nigeria.
The statement quoted Chairman of NFF’s Media and Publicity Committee, Suleiman Yahaya-Kwande, as saying Le Guen said he was not ready to live in Nigeria while working for Nigeria.
He said Le Guen’s terms were unacceptable.
He said: “In truth, the Technical and Development Committee perused the profiles of all the coaches who submitted applications and find Mr Paul Le Guen suitable for the post. But during final negotiations, he objected to being given a target and also did not wish to live in Nigeria, which was a sore point with the Board.”
Yahaya-Kwande added: “The job of Head Coach of Nigeria is a very big one and there is no way anyone will get such a job without being handed a target. There is absolutely no issue with Le Guen saying he is not coming; several highly –qualified persons would be happy to be named Manager of the Senior National Team of Nigeria. We have a plan to take care of that eventuality.”
However, a top source in the NFF who preferred not to be mentioned said Le Guen cited insecurity in the country as part of his reasons for rejecting the offer.
“The fear of a state of insecurity and other disagreements accounted for his rejection of the Eagles job we offered him.
“We were sceptical when Le Guen insisted he was not going to live in the country and we all remember the last experience we had with Sunday Oliseh.
“In fact, Le Guen’s refusal to live in Nigeria was the first point of disagreement and we don’t want to hire another Oliseh as coach of the Super Eagles, who will not live in the country.
“So, we had no option than to terminate the contract discussion because his position of living outside Nigeria while working for Nigeria will not augur well for the country’s football.
“This can also jeopardise the World Cup target we promised Nigerians,’’ the source said.
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