NFF states reason for Labbadia’s turnaround

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has responded to the news about Bruno Labbadia’s turnaround from taking up the post as Super Eagles coach.

Hours ago, it was reported that German tactician Labbadia turned down the NFF job after the federation made noise about it.

But the NFF, via its communication director, Ademola Olajire, shared an email explaining the reasons why the federation and the German could not ink a final deal.

According to the federation, robust German tax laws scuppered the NFF’s plans to appoint Labbadia as the Super Eagles’ new head coach. The deal fell through because the NFF could not agree to pay the substantial tax percentage on Labbadia’s salary demanded by German tax authorities.

Meanwhile, the communiqué continued that the NFF President, Ibrahim Gusau, said that the current tax issue was never part of the initial discussions with Labbadia from the early to the final part of the agreement until recently.

However, Labbadia insisted that the NFF pay the full tax amount, which was not feasible for the federation.

Eguavoen leads Eagles

As a result, Technical Director Augustine Eguavoen will take charge of the Super Eagles for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matches against Benin Republic and Rwanda.

READ ALSO: Labbadia’s Challenge: German coach seeks to revive Super Eagles

This will be Eguavoen’s fourth stint as team coach, having previously held the position in 2005-2007, 2010, and 2022.

The development comes after the NFF had announced Labbadia’s appointment, only for the deal to collapse. The federation will now continue its search for a permanent head coach.