Former Super Eagles’ midfielder, Mutiu Adepoju has thrown his weight fully behind the Nigerian national team’s new coach, Eric Sekou Chelle, with a verdict that the Franco-Malian tactician knows what he’s doing.
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Sports247 reports that while many Nigerian football observers are critical of Chelle’s decision to reel out a list of 39 invitees for this month’s 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Rwanda and Zimbabwe, Adepoju believes the coach is in order.
The former Castella and Real Sociedad of Spain attack-minded midfielder, who was fondly called ‘Headmaster’ during his playing days, equally pointed out that nothing should cause concern among the fans, as egg heads in Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) are backing Chelle.
Mutiu Adepoju said, “Whatever the people in charge think, that is the best way forward; but it will depend on the outcome. The coach feels he knows what he wants in those players. Some people think the matches are too close, and the final list should be out. They say he should not invite 35 or 39 players, but I believe he should know what he is doing.”
Adepoju then projected into the next line of action he believes Chelle will take, which he inferred should be trimming the 39-player provisional list to a compact one that would then be used to prosecute the upcoming matches versus Rwanda in Kigali and against Zimbabwe in Uyo.
“I know he will definitely bring another list out. He knows the reason why he’s doing it this way, and I know he will cut it to 23 or 25. I don’t see any problem with that. We can’t be talking about screening and assessing the players. They are all intelligent, and they don’t need screening. Let’s just give him our trust,” Adepoju advocated.
