Just In : Mikel interested in Nigeria job
Former Super Eagles captain Mikel Obi has expressed his desire to take on a role in the Super Eagles in the near future, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
Mikel, who retired from football in 2022, has been busy with football contents with his Obi One Podcast, but he is also looking at the prospect of bringing back his experience to the national team.
During an interview with CNN, the 36-year-old was teased about becoming the manager of the team, but the former Chelsea midfielder was quick to distance himself from the pressure and talked about a more diplomatic role.
“Not definitely, I will love to one day but I don’t want to be a manager. I don’t want to be sacked. I hate getting sacked,” Mikel said joking
“I don’t think I can handle that really well, but in some capacity, I will love to be involved again with the national team. I want to be somebody who will try to fix the problem from the top,” he continued.
“If it means to be a mediator between the players and the FA to make sure things are run properly, we have the right people managing what we should do together to succeed. For me, I think that is where we should start from.”
In a career that spanned 14 years, Mikel represented Nigeria at the U-17 and U-20 levels before earning 91 caps for the Super Eagles, scoring six goals.
He was a silver medallist and Silver Ball winner at the 2005 U-20 World Youth Cup, when the Flying Eagles lost 2-1 to a Lionel Messi-inspired Argentina in the final.
Mikel also led Nigeria to a bronze medal at the 2016 Olympics in Brazil, where the team attracted the headlines for the wrong reasons after their preparations and participation at the championship was marred by financial issues. As captain, he donated $30,000 to the cash-strapped team.
The former Chelsea player also featured at five AFCON tournaments (2006, 2008, 2010, 2013 and 2019), winning it in South Africa 2013, as well as bronze medals in 2006, 2010 and 2019.
