President of the Nigerian Football Federation (NfF) Ibrahim Gusau has reiterated that Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle will remain in the role amid uncertainty over his future, SportPremi reports.
Chelle, 48, has been linked with multiple roles since the conclusion of the 2025 African Cup of Nations tournament.
The Franco-Malian guided Nigeria to a third-placed finish, but it was their performances that really caught the eye as they displayed great attacking prowess at the tournament.
The former Mali head coach has about a year left on his contract at the Super Eagles and with no signs of an extension, he has been linked with an exit.
Tunisia, Mali and Angola have all offered him mouthwatering offers, while recent reports emerged linking him to the managerial role at French club Olympique Marseille to replace Roberto De Zerbi, who left his role on Tuesday by mutual consent.
NFF takes stance on Chelle amid exit talks
Speaking in an interview, Gusau revealed that the NFF is making plans on offering Chelle an extension, following the good work he has put into the team so far.
“We still have a one-year contract with Eric and therefore whatever anyone will show on him, he has to wait until his contract expired. And basically, you know, we don’t want to bring some distraction on him because we quite well understand that he enjoys working with Nigeria. Because it’s not about a team is interested in you,” Gusau said.
“It’s not about because he has gotten the results with the Super Eagles. So, if he goes to the other team, despite the fact that they are going to give him more money, is he going to get the results?”
The NFF president also addressed rumours from other countries who have been linked to the Nigerian head coach since the conclusion of the 2025 AFCON tournament.
“The issue there is, do they have the materials for him to work with to achieve what he wants to achieve? The dream of every single coach is to make sure that he achieves success, especially on higher tournaments.
So, when you are saying that I want the coach, we are going to look for the coach to come and we are going to pay him so and so amount of money”, he continued.
“It’s not the issue of the money. But will he achieve what he wants to achieve in his career? Or is he just going there for the money?
The key thing is that I know Coach Eric believes in the Super Eagles and he believes that he can achieve whatever he wants to achieve in his career when it comes to a coaching profession, especially with the national team within the African continent.
So, he has so much belief in the Super Eagles and he has every confidence that he can achieve all his dreams with the Super Eagles”, Gusau added.
“So, that’s the key thing that I believe in and I know we discussed it several times with him. And to us, as I have said, we believe in him. When the time comes, we definitely make Nigerians know the way forward. But Eric is part of the Super Eagles and he continues to be part of the Super Eagles.”
While the future of Chelle remains unclear for now, his main focus will be guiding Nigeria through the qualifying campaign for the 2027 AFCON tournament which begins later this year.
