After the Super Eagles’ head coach Érik Chelle submitted a 19-point proposal including a monthly salary of $130,00 ($174 million) from $50,000, debates have sparked.
Table of Contents
The Proposal in View
The budget, which was submitted on January 22, is also set to cover his assistants and technical crew. Apart from his salary, the budget also includes:
1. A private SUV with a chauffeur
2. Housing in a secure environment with uninterrupted electricity
3. Flight tickets for his wife and two children (business class for himself and his wife, economy class for his children)
4. Undelayed salary payment before the end of each month
5. Improved logistical support
6. Structured campaign program
7. Autonomy in team selection
8. Control over the choice of international matches and scouting of local and international players.
The Proposal’s Reactions
The proposal aggravated some critics who referred to it as “blackmail”, inferring that it was the Super Eagles who brought Éric to prominence, therefore he shouldn’t lean on the team that gave him the spotlight. The former Gombe State Football Chairman had said:
“This man just came to Nigeria to boost his CV. I said it before that the Super Eagles are too big for Chelle.
The Super Eagles raised Chelle to the global stage, not him raising the team, and he now wants to ‘blackmail’ us.
With the players Nigeria has, we are even the ones to ask a coach like Éric Chelle to pay us ‘privileged fees’.If we retain this man for this amount, Nigeria will regret it.” He also stated that the team has been winning by their own brilliance and not by the coach’s impact.
This sparked further local debates. While some agreed with him, pointing out that his demands were too high, owing to the fact that the Super Eagles didn’t win the Nations Cup, a lot of people countered him, saying that before he came, the Super Eagles team had been struggling and underperforming.
His salary demand placed him above many of the African coaches. Only Vladimir Petković earns above that (€135,000).
While some sources cite that the Nigerian Football Federation is in high-stakes negotiations with him, others cite that the NFF rejected the salary increment, pointing out that the country is not financially buoyant to accommodate such a salary, and also, they pointed out that the coach failed to meet the contractual agreement. The two contractual targets of 2026 which he failed to meet include:
1. Super Eagles qualifying for the FIFA World Cup (still under review)
2. Super Eagles qualifying for the final Stage of the African Cup of Nations (AFCON).
Non was achieved. They didn’t qualify for the 2026 World Cup and exited AFCON in the semi-finals. Despite these disappointments, under Chelle’s tenure, the Super Eagles enjoyed an impressive run of form, remaining undefeated throughout seven matches in Morocco.
During that span, Nigeria emerged as the competition’s most clinical side, netting a tournament-high 14 goals. This was the highest tally recorded in the competition.
The NFF considers the incremental outrageous. The secretary of the Nigerian Football Association reported to the Guardian that Chelle has a well-furnished accommodation, a car, and a driver in Abuja.
Also, reports suggest that Chelle has changed agencies, he left his former agent Abraham Sidibe, who brokered his Super Eagles appointment, and is now represented by Wilders Sport in Marseille, stating that it was time to take himself to another level and that the new agency will give him the required support and advice (Punch).
The NFF board member told Punch that before the ultimatum, the NFF president had publicly expressed his desire to continue working with him and would still meet him to discuss the new situation.
The Final Thought
The outcome of the negotiation will also determine the fate of the Super Eagles.
However, whatever the outcome of the negotiation, Chelle is expected to honour the remainder of his current contract as he still has one year before the current contract expires.
Also Read: How Éric Chelle Transformed the Super Eagles
