Former Super Eagles captain and 1980 Africa Cup of Nations winner, Segun Odegbami, has urged the Nigeria Football Federation and the National Sports Commission to immortalise the late Super Eagles coach, Adegboye Onigbinde, to preserve his legacy in Nigerian football.
Onigbinde, who handled the Nigeria national team twice and also served as a CAF and FIFA instructor, died on Monday, March 9, at the age of 88.
The Modakeke-born coach first led Nigeria between 1982 and 1984, guiding the Green Eagles to a second-place finish at the 1984 AFCON in Ivory Coast. The achievement made him the first Nigerian coach to win an AFCON medal.
He returned in 2002 as the Technical Director of the Nigeria Football Association and led a new-look Super Eagles side to the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Korea and Japan.
While tributes have continued to pour in for the late tactician, Odegbami believes he deserves a permanent place in the history of Nigerian football.
“He stands out as one of the most successful Nigerians to coach the national team and work in coaching within the country. Nigeria must find a way to immortalise him. The Nigeria Football Federation and the National Sports Commission must ensure that he is immortalised. He deserves it,” Odegbami said during a radio programme, Sports Salsa, on Kennis FM.
“It is painful for all of us. His love for football, his passion for developing the game, and the feeling that he was not fully utilised to transform Nigerian football remain notable. But he has left a legacy that is unmatched. Nigerians should always remember him for his great contributions to our football history.”
Onigbinde also served as Technical Adviser to the Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation, where he oversaw the country’s youth teams.
The Nigeria Football Federation described his death as “the exit of a great man who served Nigeria football wholeheartedly and was diligent and devoted to the development of the game.”
For many years, he worked as a technical adviser to the Confederation of African Football and served on several Technical Study Groups for both FIFA and CAF at major international tournaments.
He began his coaching career in the 1960s and rose to national prominence in 1977 when he led Water Corporation FC of Ibadan to the quarter-finals of the African Cup of Champions Clubs. Seven years later, he guided Ibadan giants Shooting Stars to the final of the same competition.
Burial arrangements for the late coach will be announced by his family in the coming days.
By Abiodun Adewale
