Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen has warned his national teammates that Eric Chelle will be a very demanding coach.
The Nigeria Football Federation announced Chelle as Super Eagles coach at the start of the year, replacing Augustine Eguavoen, who had been interim coach.
Chelle’s first task is to lead Nigeria against Rwanda and Zimbabwe in the 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers later this month. The Franco-Malian gaffer already released his 23-man squad for the games billed for later this month.
Normally, when national team coaches are employed, they reach out to the team leaders to speak to them about their plans and seek their support.
Galatasaray hitman Osimhen has admitted that Chelle has already reached out to him. And while the 47-year-old tactician has assured him of a good working relationship, he also demands a high level of commitment.
I know him (Chelle) from the previous AFCON with the Malian team. He’s a coach that loves to play and he really loves to fight,” Osimhen said on the Obi One Podcast.
“He’s going to be very demanding. He said that he needs me and the senior players on the team to work with him to achieve amazing things for Nigeria.
But he said the one who does not run or fight for every ball will not play. He was clear with me. He said he can be a big brother or an uncle to everybody. But on the pitch it is business, if the younger players see us running crazy, they will do it also.”
“He said, ‘I might scream at you guys, I might do a lot of stuff, but don’t take it to heart.’ And I agree with him because Nigeria is a bit country with millions of players.
“If you’re privileged to put on the Super Eagles jersey, you have to give everything. We’ve gotten a coach that is very demanding.”
Nigeria has one of the most talented teams on the continent, but all that talent is yet to be converted to silverware. The team came close to winning the Africa Cup of Nations last year, but they were stopped by hosts Ivory Coast.
Since then, it has been a rollercoaster. Chelle’s appointment is expected to bring some calm and co-ordination into the Super Eagles fold.
He showed a bit of what he can do at the last AFCON, as he set them up to play beautiful football, albeit they were knocked out in the quarterfinal.
He will look to bring that brand of football to Nigeria and get their push for a place at the 2026 AFCON back on track.
