Siasia poised for coaching comeback as FIFA ban nears end
Former Super Eagles head coach, Samson Siasia is gearing up to return to coaching with a local league club in the coming days, according to reports. Siasia was initially handed a life ban by FIFA over match-fixing allegations, but this ban was reduced to five years by the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS). The […]
Former Super Eagles coach, Samson Siasia
Former Super Eagles head coach, Samson Siasia is gearing up to return to coaching with a local league club in the coming days, according to reports.
Siasia was initially handed a life ban by FIFA over match-fixing allegations, but this ban was reduced to five years by the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS).
The 56-year-old will be eligible to resume his coaching career at the end of this month.
Several clubs in the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) and the Nigeria National League (NNL) have reportedly shown interest in Samson Siasia.
The former Nantes striker is expected to make a decision on his next coaching role once the ban expires.
It will be recalled he had accused the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) of colluding with FIFA to have him banned in August 2019 over alleged involvement in match-fixing.
“Nigeria abandoned me when I needed them the most,” said Siasia, a former Eagles striker and member of the 1994 AFCON-winning squad. “It was just an allegation; they accused me of bribery. But what is bribery? Isn’t it when money changes hands? Was there any evidence? None at all,” he said then.
Siasia explained that his alleged involvement stemmed from conversations with someone trying to hire him as a coach in Australia. Unbeknownst to him, the individual was a known match-fixer, but FIFA was aware of this.