Prior to their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign, Nigeria has named former Stuttgart manager Bruno Labbadia as their new men’s head coach.
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) conducted an interview with the 58-year-old German on Thursday following the breakdown of negotiations with Swede Janne Andersson and Frenchman Herve Renard.
It is confirmed by BBC Sport Africa that no contract has been signed with the German as of yet.
The Nations Cup qualifier against Benin in Uyo on September 7th is set to be Labbadia’s debut game in command. Three days later, the three-time African champions will travel to Rwanda.
Gustavo Poyet, Aitor Karanka and Fabio Cannavaro were the other contenders interviewed late in the day by the NFF.
Former Sweden coach Andersson was the frontrunner to lead Nigeria’s national team but was unavailable until November due to personal commitments.
Despite offering a lucrative deal, two-time Nations Cup winner Renard failed to finalize his contract, forcing the NFF to consider other options. After talks with various candidates, including Labbadia, Poyet, Karanka, and Cannavaro, the NFF chose Labbadia, a UEFA Pro License holder with experience managing top German clubs. NFF’s Executive Committee approved his appointment as Super Eagles head coach, effective immediately.
Labbadia becomes the sixth German to coach the Super Eagles, following Marotzke, Goller, Honer, Vogts, and Rohr.
He faces high expectations, with Nigeria struggling in World Cup qualifiers, trailing Rwanda in Group C. Additionally, he must win over a skeptical fanbase and media, while dealing with the lack of a permanent home ground, training facilities, and unresolved player allowances. Labbadia will quickly need to deliver results in the upcoming Nations Cup and World Cup qualifiers.
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