19th November, 2021
By Emmanuel Afonne
Chief Whip of the Senate, Sen. Orji Kalu, says he will handle the Super Eagles better than its present coach, Gernot Rohr, following the disappointing 1-1 draw the team played with Blue Sharks of Cape Verde.
The outcome of the match played in Lagos, though disappointing, ensured that the Super Eagles qualified for the Qatar 2022 World Cup play-off.
The result also ensured the Super Eagles finished top of their Group with 13 points, while Cape Verde were second with 11 points.
But Sen. Kalu, in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday said the coach was as good as his last game, and that Rohr for not having any tactics in the match, ought to be sacked.
“Gernot Rohr is not a motivator to the players because he has nothing to offer; I can even motivate the players more than him because I’m a super motivator of my players.
“He is not a coach; I don’t see anything good in him; he has no stamina, no strategy, he doesn’t play any system and his team doesn’t excite me,” he said.
According to Kalu, he will prefer a local coach for the Super Eagles once he will be paid well and allowed to do his job.
“Where the coach comes from doesn’t matter. We have a lot of Nigeria coaches whom if you pay them what is due to them, they will do the job well.
“We have a lot of coaches both locally and international, and I’m sure NFF President Amaju Pinnick knows these people.
“If he is in doubt, he should consult me and I will tell him some names of coaches he can approach, whether local or international.
“If you ask me, I will prefer a Nigerian to coach the Super Eagles, but he should be paid well and given a schedule of international standard to operate.
Kalu had on Thursday through his social media handle called on NFF to find a replacemet for Rohr, as he had failed to live up to expectation of sports-loving Nigerians.
The African Pillar of Sports also said that he refused to employ Rohr as Enyimba coach in 2003 when he was the governor of Abia because he did not possess the qualities of a coach.