Gernot Rohr might have been an unknown coach in Nigeria despite the fact he led Bordeaux to the 1996 UEFA Cup final before losing to Bayern Munich, yet the German has silenced his critics with the success he has so far enjoyed with the Super Eagles Of Nigeria having become the first African nation to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia as well as beating highly fancied Argentina 4-2 in a friendly on Tuesday.
At 67, Rohr did not have an impressive Resume when he was hired by the NFF in 2016 with with less fancied spells at the likes of Niger, Burkina Faso and Etoile Sahel. To buttress further, the German was not even considered good enough to manage the Syli Stars of Guinea shortly before his appointment in Nigeria , a decision which now looks folly considering the new heights the Super Eagles now enjoy under him.
Shortly before his appointment, the Super Eagles then African defending champions were ranked 70th in FIFA World Ranking as in addition to their inability to qualify for the two previous Africa Nations Cup in Gabon (2015) and Equitorial Guinea (2017) as well as having their coach Sunday Oliseh abandon them shortly before they must win game against the Pharaohs of Egypt for the Nations Cup Qualification.
Shortly after taking over, the German developed a highly productive scouting network which scouted Nigerians born abroad as well as those who left the country early to play in Europe. This was not enough as the average age of the national team has also been reduced from 29 years to 26 with many youngsters making their debuts under him (Alex Iwobi, Ola Aina, Ola Brown to mention but a few) . Despite being seeded in a difficult group for the World Cup (Cameroon - defending African Champions, Zambia and Algeria all of them one time African Champions) , the Eagles ended the qualification unbeaten gaining 14 points from a possible 18 as well as having a goal difference of 8 with second placed Zambia on 8 points and a goal difference of 1 in addition to qualifying for the World Cup with a game to spare.
Though there is still as much as six months to go before the World Cup, Rohr knows most of his players with the duo of Leon Balogun and William Troost-Ekong partnering near perfectly in central defence and Ola Aina/Elderson Echiejile and Shehu Abdulahi playing on the wings not leaving out John Mikel Obi, Ndidi Wilfred and Ogueyi Onazi in midfield as well as Kelechi Iheanacho, Victor Moses and Alex Iwobi in attack in a 4-3-3 formation not forgetting goalkeeper Ikechukwu Ezenwa who has been brilliant since taking over from the ever reliable and confident Carl Ikeme who is battling Cancer bravely at present .
Having come behind to win 4-2 against football mighty Argentina at full strength although Lionel Messi wasn't in the game, the fans of the Super Eagles must be forgiven for been super excited and joyous given how they team have gone from strength to strength under a low profile manager who is like a father to the players and who has given life back to a team that lacked confidence before his appointment.
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