First and foremost, Waldrum qualified Nigeria for the world cup via the most difficult route compared to any other Super Falcons coach in history (arguably).
It doesn’t get harder than qualifying for the world cup by defeating Ivory Coast, Ghana (GHANA) and Cameroon. Please, go back and watch those five games to see what Waldrum brought to the table.
These include:
1) introduction of fresh legs who made immediate impact like Onumonu, Okoronkwo, Plumptre and Alozie.
2) Borrowing heavily from 4-3-3 and 4-2-3-1 formations and injecting his own twist to overcome these formidable foes.
3) Heavy use of overlapping fullbacks in offensive efforts.
4) Blending dual nationality and indigenous players for the first time in the history of the Super Falcons in a manner that supports team cohesion and achievement of core objectives (to qualify for the World Cup).
5) Invoking the Nigerian spirit of exemplary organisation without the ball in a manner that keeps scorelines respectable (for the most parts) against formidable foes.
6) Bringing out the best in players like Ucheibe, Abiodun, Ajibade and Nnadozie (and Ifeoma Onumonu) with exemplary man management skills.
7) Laying a solid foundation for the future of the Super Falcons by introducing the following players into the team (although some of these didn’t make the world cup roster): Sebastian, Onyenezide, Abiodun, Nicole Payne, Rofiat Imruan, Demehin, Rita Akerekor, Anam Imo, Suliyat Abideen.
8) Retraining Nigeria’s reputation of always qualifying for the Women’s World Cup.
9) Retaining Nigeria’s reputation of never failing to reach the semi finals of the Women’s Afcon.
10) Last by no means least, achieving core targets and building Nigeria a team for the future despite not being paid for many months and having to work under squalid conditions.