Nigeria's Next Coach: Amunike In, Finidi Out As Top 5 Reported Candidates Emerge for Super Eagles

• Emmanuel Amunike is said to be the top candidate for the Super Eagles job
• The former Nigeria forward has overtaken Finidi George in the pole position
• Nigeria is currently without a national coach since Jose Peseiro's departure

Former Nigeria forward, Emmanuel Amunike, is reportedly the leading candidate to become the next Super Eagles coach as the Nigeria Football Federation prepares to release the final shortlist.

Over 100 coaches across the globe had applied for the vacant Nigeria job after the NFF called for applications, after the exit of Jose Peseiro, who led them to the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations finals.

According to The Sun Nigeria, Finidi George, who is currently the interim coach of the Super Eagles, has been knocked out of the job as he does not possess a UEFA Pro coaching license.

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The NFF Technical Committee will reportedly meet in Abuja today (April 16) to deliberate and finally unveil the shortlist as both top foreign and local coaches await their fate.

The next Super Eagles coach will be tasked with seeing Nigeria qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America and also coaching them to the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations title.

Top 5 candidates for Nigeria job: report

Meanwhile, Amunike is expected to be on the final shortlist for the vacant Super Eagles job and reportedly leads the list of five coaches presently being crosschecked for the role, Own Goal Nigeria reports.

The former Nigeria under-17 manager will contend for the job alongside three foreign coaches including Dutchman Danny Buijs, Portuguese coach Antony Conceicao, and Spanish coach Domenec Torrent.

Also said to be in the running for the Super Eagles national coaching position is the current coach of the Under-20 team of the United States, Michael Nsien, who also holds a UEFA Pro coaching license.

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Finidi reportedly out of race

Sports Brief also previously reported that Finidi is apparently not being considered for the Super Eagles role by the NFF, despite being one of the top contenders who had applied.

Following Peseiro's departure in February, the former Real Betis midfielder took temporary leadership of the team for their international friendlies against Ghana and Mali in March.

The NFF were apparently unimpressed with Finidi's brief time as Nigeria manager in both friendly games, which were marked by conflicts with some of the squad's veteran players.