Italy Legend, Cannavaro Alludes To Reject Super Eagles Offer

Fabio Cannavaro, a former Italian international, has disclosed that he turned down the chance to coach Nigeria’s national team, Super Eagles.

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) approached the 50-year-old expatriate to coach the Super Eagles.

Cannavaro stated that his immediate priority for now is not to work in Africa.

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The former Juventus and Real Madrid centre-back, while speaking to La Gazzetta dello Sport, said he is awaiting offers from clubs in Europe and Italy.

“I had offers from Nigeria [national team] and Iranian clubs, but I want to wait for Serie A and European clubs until December. After that, I may start travelling again,”

He guided Udinese to Serie A safety last season.

Super Eagles is currently with out a head coach after German coach Bruno Labbadia turned down Nigeria’s offer to coach the three time African Champions, just four days after Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) president Ibrahim Gusau went public with a statement on Tuesday via X to announce the agreement with the former striker.

Austin Eguavoen, the NFF’s Technical Director, took over as coach of the Super Eagles after the NFF failed to reach an agreement with the proposed manager, Labbadia.

Eguavoen has taken the helm of Nigeria’s national team four times. He first managed the team from 2005 to 2007, then again in 2010, and most recently in 2022.

Nigeria’s failure to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar during his last tenure remains a bitter pill for many Nigerian football fans to swallow.