When I first saw Eric Chelle at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Cote D’Ivoire, I was wowed at his handsomeness and his French.
The young gaffer carried himself with so much charisma and composure. That was what got me vested in the Malian team during the tournament.
I wanted to see how this fine man’s team played. And, oh, they did play fine as well; the loss to the host country in the last 8 was just something that happens in football – unexpected momentum shift.
And Chelle almost fainted; laughs. He gave us a historic meme from the AFCON. In case you are lost, remember the coach whose assistants were pouring water on his head, yep, that’s him – laughs.
The new coach of the Super Eagles, Eric Chelle of Mali https://t.co/Q0OSZ2jEJU pic.twitter.com/MO6ycW3SE7
— Micolo⚡️ (@official_micolo) January 7, 2025
That scenario might have caused lots of people to laugh unstoppably on social media and might be continually used as a meme, but it did tell one thing – it shows how vested Chelle was in succeeding. I pitied him, considering how they lost that game, but football is football.
And the game has brought him right to my doorstep as the gaffer of the Super Eagles. And I could not help but say it out loud on my desk, finally, a fine ass man as coach. My head spun into history as I scanned through the coaches we have had and tried to pick who could have been more handsome.
Honestly, I could find none.
Let’s Roll Back Memory
The Super Eagles have 28 previous coaches in all ramifications. I could say the first coach I really knew was Clemens Westerhof. I heard the name a lot of times as a child and of course, after winning the 1994 AFCON and getting to the USA ‘94 World Cup, the country’s first; you certainly understood why.
Then Bonfere Jo and the triumph at the 1996 Olympics and then the likes of Christian Chukwu, late Amodu Shaibu, late Stephen Keshi, the back and forth of Austine Eguaveon, Samson Siasia as the local gaffers we have had.
Gernot Rohr, Jose Peseiro and a few other foreign coaches had short spells as head coach here. Looking at this list of 28 coaches, apart from Eguaveon, who had that charisma any time he was in the dugout, none came to the 29th head coach of the team.
We could make excuses for the younger version of Westerhof, perhaps, but he would still not rank as number 1. So, it is safe to say Eric Chelle is undisputedly the finest coach ever.
Fine with Finesse and Chelle
Eric, so far in his first few days as head coach, has shown lots of finesse and chelle. He has gone around the NPFL to familiarize himself with the league and possibly see the quality of players paraded. He also had, as expected, contacted Super Eagles players, as ascertained by Victor Osimhen during his chat with Mikel Obi on the Obi One Podcast.
This, for me, was him showing the panache needed as a coach of the most valued national team in Africa. Showing confidence in a new appointment that comes with lots of pressure tells a lot about him.
And just like his name, he is a ‘chelled’ guy. He handles every moment with a lot of calmness. Watching him at the unveiling and how he answered questions showed he would not be undone by the pressure.
Since the Super Eagles camp opened in Kigali ahead of the World Cup qualifier, we have seen videos of him welcoming each player. That’s what I call fine with finesse, and I think the strategy will work fine for all egos involved.
+3️⃣ Víctor Osimhen, Bruno Onyemaechi and Eric Chelle joined the Nigerian 🇳🇬 camp at Kigali last night taking the number in camp to 6️⃣
More arrivals are expected today. #54footballx #WC2026Q pic.twitter.com/XJGwzt56c6
— Official54fx (@54footballx) March 17, 2025
The task at hand
Nigerians await what the Super Eagles will look like under this fine, chilled man. They await how they can turn the poor run in the World Cup race to something worthwhile.
Eric will have to give answers starting this Friday against Rwanda, or the fans will let all hell loose.
But, whatever the result, the Super Eagles have ticked the box of a fine man tutoring them and he sure remains the finest they ever had.
