Sven Goran Eriksson has accused Nigerian FA of demanding half of his salary before giving him the job of managing the Super Eagles.
The Swedish-born tactician made this known in his book “My Story” which summed up his experience and journey through out his playing and managerial career in football.
Sven Goran Eriksson is a renowned coach that has managed many national teams across Europe and Africa.
He has also managed top clubs in Europe, especially in the Italian league where he won several domestic and European titles.
Narrating in his book, Sven Goran Eriksson said he was among the top managers lineup for the Super Eagles job after the Nigerian FA sacked the team coach after the country crashed out of the semi-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations.
He would have been the next in line to lead the country to the first FIFA World Cup on African soil – the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
But the move was stalled by his refusal to “play ball” with the Nigerian FA by forfeiting half of his salary. This made him to missed the opportunity.
Nigerian football federation sacked Shaibu Ahmodu in 2010, an indigenous coach, after he led Nigeria to a bronze medal in the Africa cup of Nations.
Nigeria reached the semifinals, and finished third in the Africa Cup of Nations before the 2010 World Cup in South Africa under the tutelage of Shaibu Ahmodu.
Normally, one would have expected Shauibu to finish off his job, with a better performance in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, but the NFF showed him they way out due to their lack of belief in indigenous coaches.
A Swedish-born coach, Lars Lagerback, was appointed to take over from Shaibu Ahmodu and led the Super Eagles to the 2010 World Cup.
Nigeria failed to qualify from the Group stage of the competition and were bundled out of the tournament with Argentina and South Korea, making it to the next round of the competition.
Sven Gora Erikssen mentioned this in his book, saying, “Nigeria did not trust the domestic coaches,” and he was lineup up for the job before another Swiss Lars Lagerback took over.
According to Erikssen, his refusal to “play ball” with his salary is what cost him the job, as the Nigeria football governing body demanded it as a condition to give him the job.
Eriksson said he “flew to Abuja to Hilton Hotel to meet the Nigeria FA” to negotiate the terms of agreement on the job.
According to him, “ten people were sitting, as if on a panel, behind a table and “they started asking stupid questions, right away.”
Lars Lagerback, a fellow Swiss, later got the Nigeria job, while Eriksson was in charge of the Ivory Coast in South Africa in 2010.
Sven Goran Eriksson
Born in Torsby, Sweden, on 5 February 1948, Goran Erikssen is a former right-back and professional football manager.
He has managed the national teams of England, Mexico, Philippines and the Ivory Coast, as well as two clubs in England.
Eriksson has coached in ten countries: Sweden, Portugal, Italy, England, Mexico, Ivory Coast, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, China, and the Philippines.
He had an unassuming and less obvious playing career without any trophy as a player. But as a manager, he has won several trophies across top leagues in Europe, both domestic and European trophies.
