The way and manner the Super Eagles cruised into the knockout rounds of the AFCON in Cameroon coupled with the lack of decisiveness or confusion by the NFF leadership should be enough for Augustine Eguavoen to still be the man to lead the country to this year’s World Cup in Qatar.
CAF have already recognised the efforts of Eguavoen by naming him as the Best Coach of the group stage of the AFCON.
The flying Eagles won all three group games versus Egypt, Sudan and Guinea Bissau.
It was not just the results that were worthy of note, but also the confidence and ease with which the team achieved qualification to the Round of 16.
Eguavoen has within weeks brought a much-needed freshness and new belief to a team, who previously laboured against the likes of Central African Republic, Cape Verde and Sierra Leone.
The Eagles are flying in Cameroon with the sort of swagger associated with great Nigerian teams of the past – daring and inventive wing play, athleticism as well as effective defending.
Moses Simon has stood out with his electrifying runs and team play, Wilfred Ndidi the assured screen in midfield for the defence, William Ekong has cut out the mistakes he suffered at his Premier League club lately, while Kelechi Iheanacho has shown class playing behind the top striker.
Tomorrow’s clash against Tunisia will be the toughest test yet for both Eguavoen and the Super Eagles.
The North Africans barely made it through to this stage of the competition after losing two of their group games.
But this is now the business end of the AFCON, where a slip could be punished with elimination and even luck could play a big part on who goes to the next round of the tournament.
Good enough Eguavoen has been able to give almost all the 27 players in Cameroon a run-out that he is now clear on his best team.
The fine run by the Eagles in Cameroon has renewed Nigerians’ confidence in the team and this could be further boosted as they push through to the later stages of the tournament.
How the Eagles fare at this AFCON will go a long way in having a direct bearing on the team’s performance in the final playoffs for the 2022 World Cup in March.
It would therefore be crucial that they go all the way to a fourth AFCON crown.
Beyond this, it will only be logical for Eguavoen to keep the job also for the World Cup playoffs, which is just two months away.
And should he then go ahead and qualify Nigeria to the World Cup, he ought to be given a performance-based contract at least till after the World Cup in December 2022.
Of course, there remains genuine apprehension about how local coaches have coped with all manner of pressures when they have been entrusted with the Eagles job.
But even when Nigerians will continue to demand Eguavoen remains professional and focused, it is equally important that he enjoys the full support of his employers.
NFF president Amaju Pinnick has already sang discordant tunes about the suitability of Eguavoen for the top post as he has made it clear he would prefer a foreign coach for the Eagles.
Adegboye Onigbinde led Nigeria to the 2002 World Cup and Stephen Keshi achieved even more when he won the 2013 AFCON and qualified the country to the knockout rounds of the 2014 World Cup.
Keshi’s close friend Eguavoen has done well to now deserve his own chance.
