NFF Sacks Super Falcons Coaching Crew: Nigerian Coaches Need To Improve Themselves - Fast!

Pride goes before a fall as the Super Falcons failed spectacularly in this year's Wafcon despite approaching the tournament with arguably an air of overconfidence.

The Executive Committee of the Nigeria Football Federation announced on X (twitter) that they have asked members of the technical crew of the the Super Falcons to step down with immediate effect.

The Super...... wait, let me first and foremost congratulate Cameroon who showed Nigeria that focus, concentration, hard work and attention to details win you Wafcon these days, not reliance on past glory.

A lesson here to all indigenous Nigerian coaches - once you have been found out, adapt! adapt! adapt!

The NFF ineptitude is one thing, inability of our indigenous coaches to work on their craft, inability to improve themselves, unavailability to update their methods will always mean they wallow in mediocrity.

In Wafcon 2025, Super Falcons opponents never knew what to expect. The team had been managed by Randy Waldrum for like 3 years with his more South American brand of football built around a structure, organisation, and a tactical approach that prioritise defence ahead of attack.

That was what our oppositions last year were used to expecting.

Come in Madugu, who, for all intent and purposes, was an unknown quantity.

Madugu took a more different approach, returning the Super Falcons to the methods that won copious Wafcons back in the days. His method prioritised attack ahead of defence within a loose framework openness, expansive play and reliance on long balls and crosses (to big, bulky, bullish centre forwards like Okoronkwo) to overwhelm and grind down oppositions which was epitomised in the demolition of Zambia in the quarter finals and the turnaround victory against Morocco in the final itself.

Madugu's methods - a sharp, distinct, radical departure from Waldrum's - caught oppositions unawares and won us the trophy.

Here is the problem: in 2026, oppositions are well aware of Madugu's methods and are now better, far better, prepared to counter, curtail, neutralise him.

In fact, Madugu had 3 problems:

1. His methods were not as sharp as they were in 2025 due to complacency and local coaches' inability to continually improve themselves (NFF or no NFF).

2. Opposition teams are now supremely ready for whatever Madugu would throw at them.

3. Madugu's Super Falcons had regressed from just 1 year ago as the coach himself (ever so averse and blind to the "concept of continuous improvement") failed to scout for hungry, fresh, vibrant talents that can maximise the fading possibilities inherent in methods (that are now an open secret).

All of these are compounded by NFF's ineptitude. But this article is not about NFF, it's all about Coach Madugu's behaviour as a crucial microcosm of how ALL indigenous Nigerian coaches are blind to the concept of continuous improvement and, hence, fail woeful to improve themselves.

NFF will not improve Madugu. Madugu has to value his own career, integrity and goals more than the NFF values them.

NFF or no NFF, Madugu failed to improve his methods, he failed to assemble hungry players, he failed to do his homework work, he failed to motivate the players enough.

I am not here to thrash Madugu, oh no. Unlike fans who claim he has no methods, no tactics, no strategy, no technique. I disagree. He has these, and more... and I applaud him for our 10th Wafcon win.

However, indigenous coaches can still achieve "mild to moderate" success in spite of NFF's failings. Madugu failed yakata! 1.No Wafcon trophy. 2 No qualification for the world cup through the front door. 3. No qualification for the world cup through the back door.

Three-pronged failure for a coach who could easily have achieved at least 1 of these despite NFF's ineptitude.

Moral of the story: As we, or as I have seen over more recent history, indigenous coaches have their methods which have been proven to give them wins. However, these wins are fleeting, fugacious, fly-by-night. They often win pockets of battles but are defeated in the ultimate war.

Horrific player selection is killing them. Look at Ladan Bosso: an indigenous coach I like. That one will flood his team with northerners and hope to perform wonders.

Madugu overrelied on the same team that won him the Wafcon last year. After it became clear after our first match against Malawi that that team was not up to the job, he became confused in his player selection for the remainder of the tournament.

Anyway, enough said. NFF or no NFF, indigenous coaches should take their own careers more seriously, update their skills, imbibe a "continuous improvement" mindset, and seek to adapt to changing circumstances with team selections that will let their own methods to flourish.