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Tag: Coach

  • Gattuso appointed as new Italy coach ahead of 2026 World Cup

    Gattuso appointed as new Italy coach ahead of 2026 World Cup

    Italy have appointed former midfielder Gennaro Gattuso as their manager.

    Gattuso succeeds Luciano Spalletti after his dismissal last week.

    The 2006 World Cup winner takes charge after leaving Hajduk Split at the end of last season. His initial task is to guide Italy to next year’s World Cup.

    “Gattuso is a symbol of Italian football,” declared FIGC President Gabriele Gravina.

    “The Azzurri jersey is like another layer of skin for him. His motivation, his professionalism and his experience will be crucial to best meet the national team’s future goals.

    “Understanding the importance of the goals we want to achieve, I thank him for the accessibility and full commitment with which he has accepted this challenge.”

    Gattuso’s formal presentation will be held in Rome this Thursday.

  • Central Africa Republic appoints Rigobert Song as coach

    Central Africa Republic appoints Rigobert Song as coach

    Former Cameroon coach Rigobert Song has been appointed the new Central African Republic manager, the country’s sports minister said late Monday.

    Song will aim to guide the country to qualification for the Africa Cup of Nations finals for the first time in its history.

    The Wild Beasts missed out on the 2023 tournament after losing their last two qualifiers.

    Cameroon chose not to renew the 48-year-old former Liverpool and West Ham defender’s contract after the Indomitable Lions crashed out of the Africa Cup of Nations at the last 16 stage in January last year, when they were beaten 2-0 by Nigeria.

    Song also guided Cameroon to qualification for the 2022 World Cup finals in Qatar, with a goal late in extra time in a qualifier against Algeria sealing their spot.

    In Qatar, they were eliminated in the group phase despite a 1-0 win against Brazil.

    In 23 matches in charge of Cameroon, Song won six games, with nine defeats and eight draws.

    As a player, Song made 137 appearances for Cameroon.

  • 24hrs after Wolves fired coach, Southampton sacks manager over 0-5 loss to Tottenham

    24hrs after Wolves fired coach, Southampton sacks manager over 0-5 loss to Tottenham

    Barely 24hours after fires it’s head coach Southampton have also parted ways with manager Russell Martin after a humiliating 0-5 defeat to Tottenham.

    The decision was announced today, with the club seeking new leadership to turn their season around.

    Speculation has already begun on who will take the reins at St. Mary’s, with fans and pundits suggesting potential candidates. Southampton’s next move will be critical as they aim to stabilize their campaign.

  • Reports of me quitting Super Eagles job is false – Eguavoen

    Reports of me quitting Super Eagles job is false – Eguavoen

    Super Eagles interim coach Augustine Eguavoen has dismissed rumours making the rounds that he has quit his role, following Tuesday’s barren draw against the Amavubi of Rwanda in Kigali.

    The rumours of Eguavoen’s resignation started making the rounds, following his post-match reaction in Kigali.

    This was after Super Eagles 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) matchday two qualifying match against Rwanda, which ended 0-0 at the Amahoro Stadium in Kigali.

    However, Eguavoen, who spoke to newsmen after the team touched down in Abuja, debunked the rumours as false and misleading, saying that he was misquoted.

    He affirmed that he was still in charge of the Super Eagles and would sit down with the federation’s hierarchy to evaluate the team’s performance, following the two matches played.

    “It is quite unfortunate that people would just trigger something that is not correct, and at the situation that we are in now, we don’t need negative stories.

    “I only talked about sitting down with the hierarchy of the federation after these two games to see how we go about prosecuting the next games.

    “But, when I saw that story, I was kind of really worried and concerned. Whatever people are reading out there is not correct, and I am still very much in charge.

    “I am the Technical Director of the Nigeria Football Federation, saddled with the responsibility of taking charge of the Super Eagles at this moment, and that’s where we are,” he said.

    The Eagles will next confront the Mediterranean Knights of Libya at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo, mid-October.

  • Austin Eguavoen quits as Super Eagles interim coach

    Austin Eguavoen quits as Super Eagles interim coach

    Super Eagles interim coach, Augustine Eguavoen as quit his role from the Nigeria national team.

    According to OwnGoalNigeria, Eguavoen said his assignment was limited to two matches.

    Eguavoen is stepping down after the match against Rwanda in Kigali, on Tuesday.

    He said, “I have been given a mandate to handle two games. I will want to say I am very pleased with the boys and again, thanks to the NFF leadership and all the boys who supported me in terms of discipline and working hard.

    “It ends today, which is the two games mandate. I can’t talk about Libya, because I haven’t been told but I can talk about it a little bit in case we have another coach, we can talk about it.”

    Eguavoen was appointed by the technical director of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) following unsuccessful efforts to secure a permanent head coach for the national team.

    He oversaw two qualifying matches for the 2025 AFCON against the Benin Republic and Rwanda.

  • What made me resign as Super Eagles coach in 2016 – Sunday Oliseh

    What made me resign as Super Eagles coach in 2016 – Sunday Oliseh

    Former Super Eagles midfielder Sunday Oliseh has revealed the reasons behind his resignation as the national team’s coach in 2016. In an interview on Elegbete TV on YouTube, Oliseh discussed the challenges he faced during his tenure.

     

    Appointed as head coach in July 2015, Oliseh resigned from the position in February 2016. The former Juventus midfielder cited a lack of support from his employers, players, and the media as the primary reasons for his departure.

     

    “I coached the Super Eagles for fourteen games, winning four and losing only two. One of the losses was a friendly against Congo in Belgium.

     

    “After being unpaid for four months, and my assistants for six months, I fell ill and received no support. I spent thousands of dollars on medical treatment and was mocked by some media for my illness. I resigned because I didn’t get support.

    When I left, Nigeria was still on track to qualify for the 2017 Nations Cup, needing to beat Egypt to qualify,” Oliseh explained.

  • I miss everyday life as a coach – Zidane

    I miss everyday life as a coach – Zidane

    Former Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane admits he misses coaching.

    It’s coming up to three years since Zidane left the Real job.

    “Now I’m busy in another way,” he told Carre. “Sometimes I miss everyday life. Even if everyday life as a coach is ‘hot’.

    “I took a break which has become a great break. I miss it from time to time.”

    Zidane also spoke at length about his relationship with Marseille.

    “For me, Marseille is the capital of football and also of sport. La Castellane? Many athletes have come from this neighbourhood. That’s why we I would like to see more Marseille players at OM, coming from the neighbourhoods.”

    On the regret of never having worn the OM shirt, he said: “It happened like this, it wasn’t me, but Marseille and the club are always in my heart. From the age of 11 to 14 I was at the Vélodrome stadium. I went to the virage north and I would get under the board. In any case, no one will take it away from me.”

  • Super Eagles: Don’t look down on Nigerian coaches, Gora tells NFF

    Super Eagles: Don’t look down on Nigerian coaches, Gora tells NFF

    Elias Gora, a retired sport administrator, on Friday advised the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) not to look down on Nigerian coaches, in picking a substantive Super Eagles’ manager.

    Gora, in an interview with NAN in Lagos, said Nigerian coaches have what it takes to do the job.

    He said, “It is about time the job is done by our home made coaches who have contributed perfectly to the team.

    “This is a reality, we can see other countries like Cameroon and Senegal who engaged their local coaches and they performed excellently in the past.

    “It’s your own that will lead you to success; look at Cote D’Ivoire which succeeded by employing their local coach.

    “There are so many Nigerians that have done that perfectly, so why are we now looking down on them presently?”

    The sport administrator appealed to NFF to look within and choose the appropriate coach for the team.

    According to him, no matter how many times the country has failed, they should think within the box and have a solid foundation to lay for the coming generations.

    He said that a Nigerian would perform better than any foreign coach, with their valuable contributions and experiences in the past.

    The NFF technical committee met on Thursday in Abuja to shortlist coaches who had applied to replace Jose Peseiro as Super Eagles coach.

    The committee will also go through applications from coaches for the vacant position of the head coach of the country’s U17 team, the Golden Eaglets.

    The committee will table their recommendations before the NFF executive committee, after which the football federation will announce the successful candidates.

    Top coaches like Emmanuel Amuneke, Finidi George, Daniel Amokachi, Samson Siasia and Salisu Yusuf have all applied to lead the Super Eagles.

    Coaches interested in leading the Golden Eaglets include Manu Garba, Nduka Ugbade and Abdullahi Biffo.

  • Gombe United confirms coach Babaganaru’s resignation

    Gombe United confirms coach Babaganaru’s resignation

    Relegation threatened Gombe United Football Club on Thursday confirmed the resignation of head coach, Mohammed Babaganaru.

    The General Manager of the club, Abubakar Abubakar, confirmed Babaganaru’s resignation in an interview with NAN in Gombe.

    “Yes, he (Babaganaru) has resigned,” said Abubakar.

    Asked the reasons for the resignation, Abubakar said, “I don’t know, call him and ask him.”

    Efforts to contact Babaganaru proved abortive as his phone was switched off.

    A top management staff, who declined to be mentioned because he was not authorised to speak for the club, said the coach resigned on Wednesday citing poor funding by the state government, which according to the coach had become unbearable for his team.

    Babaganaru had in an interview with NAN on Sunday shortly after his team’s 2-0 victory over Sporting Lagos at the Pantami Stadium appealed to Gov. Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State to rescue the team.

    The coach said, “Finance is our major problem and we are pleading with Gov. Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State to come to our aid.

    “We will go places with financial boost. We have the quality looking at the recruitment we did.

    “It (not having enough funds) will affect the team in the NPFL.

    “There is nothing you can do without money,” he said.

    The two-time winner of NPFL with Kano Pillars who was hired by Gombe United in September 2023 had in several interviews complained about delay in making away trips.

    This, he said, had often affected his players’ performance in away matches as they were always fatigued after long journeys by road.

    The Maiduguri-born coach had also managed Lobi Stars of Makurdi, Nasarawa United, Wikki Tourists and El Kanemi Warriors before coming to Gombe United.

    On July 19, 2023, Aliyu Zubairu, Babaganaru’s predecessor also left the club after four seasons, identifying poor condition of service for his decision not to renew his contract with the club.

    Gombe United currently occupies the 19th position on the NPFL log with 21 points from 21 matches with -17 goals difference.

  • AFCON 2023: Egypt dumps head coach after disappointing performance

    AFCON 2023: Egypt dumps head coach after disappointing performance

    Rui Vitoria has been sacked as Egypt head coach after the African football giants hopes of a record-extending eighth Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) triumph were dashed last week, the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) announced.

    In a statement, the EFA board of directors “thanked Portuguese manager Rui Vitoria and his staff,” adding it was “reviewing foreign coaches’ resumes”.

    In the interim, former al-Ahly coach Mohamed Youssef would take charge of the national side, who were knocked out of the competition last week in a dramatic penalty shoot-out against the Democratic Republic of Congo.

    The loss in the last 16 was a bitter pill for the Egyptians, who had gone to Ivory Coast hoping to win a first AFCON since 2010, a year before talisman Mohamed Salah made his senior international debut.

    The team had already lost the Liverpool star to a hamstring injury, after what local pundits called a lacklustre group stage performance with three draws.

    The EFA had last week “apologised” to Egyptian fans for “not achieving their ambitions”.

    Vitoria, whose tenure with the Pharoahs lasted under two years, is among a host of AFCON coaches on their way out.

    The tournament has been a success for the continent’s underdogs, and disappointing for its heavyweights.

    The five top-ranked African nations were all knocked out before the quarter-finals, as well as the four semi-finalists from the last edition.