Nigeria Football Federation Sack Coaches Salisu Yusuf and Nduka Ugbade

• Salisu Yusuf failed to qualify Nigeria's U23s for the African Cup of Nations, as the Dream Team also missed out on Olympic qualification
• The Nigeria U17 side, managed by Nduka Ugbade, also crashed out of the U17 AFCON tournament, and will not have a chance at the World Youth Championships
• Both coaches have been relieved of their respective duties by the Nigeria Football Federation

The Nigeria Football Federation has relieved coaches Salisu Yusuf and Nduka Ugbade of their jobs, respectively.

Salisu and Ugbade were relieved of their duties following their respective team’s performances in recent outings.

The Nigeria U23 team, handled by Yusuf, failed to qualify for the African Cup of Nations and, as a result, will not be part of the next Olympic football event.

On the other hand, Ugbade’s Golden Eaglets were knocked out of the FIFA U17 Africa Cup of Nations in the last eight, which consequently cost the team a chance to qualify for the U17 World Cup.

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NFF President, Ibrahim Gusau announced the sacking of both coaches in a chat with Complete Sports, as per Daily Post.

“Their jobs are tied to the competition. The coaches have no jobs to do for now since their teams failed to qualify.”

Ugabde refuses to blame players

Meanwhile, Ugbade refused to blame his players following their 2-1 defeat to Burkina Faso on May 11 in the 2023 African Cup of Nations.

Despite the Nigerian team having many chances to score in the first half, they failed to convert, allowing their opponents to fight back and score two goals.

The Golden Eaglets' coach explained that his players had tried their best, but it was not enough.

Salisu wants Eagles return

Sports Brief earlier reported that after his inability to help Nigeria qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics, Salisu Yusuf has stated emphatically that his target now is to return to the Super Eagles as an assistant coach.

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The former Kano Pillars gaffer and his wards at the Under-23 national team failed to qualify for the 2023 African Cup of Nations after losing in the play-offs against Guinea.

According to a report, Yusuf claimed that there is no reason for him to quit the national team setup in Nigeria.