Former Super Eagles coach, Chief Adegboye Onigbinde, has said that for Nigeria’s football to hit the zenith, the sport needs to be managed by well grounded administrators who will not ignore the major actors such as players and coaches.

Onigbinde, a FIFA and CAF Technical Instructor, who spoke to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said effective administration would help to reposition the nation’s football both locally and abroad.

“We need to sit down as a football-loving nation and get ourselves properly organised. Having abundant talents is not enough for the development of football if there are no good administrators to develop them,” Onigbinde said.

Adegboye Onigbinde

The Modakeke-born administrator added: “A good administrator should ensure that coaches, who are the major points of contact with the players, are not ignored. Football administrators abound in the country, but they are not doing enough to ensure that coaches are encouraged to source for raw talents and nurture them to stardom.”

On the establishment of private football academies in the country, the CAF technical instructor said it was a right step in the right direction.

According to him, they will help to discover talents at the grassroots.
Onigbinde, however, lauded the contributions of Pepsi Football Academy in Ogun to grassroots soccer.

He advised proprietors of the football academies to adhere strictly to the guidelines of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF).

“Most of the academies do not expose footballers under their training to the appropriate tutelage as stipulated by the NFF. There is also the need to improve the standard of coaching which will in turn impact on young players,”he stressed.