The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has reported denied reports that a replacement for Jose Peseiro is already in place, labelling the news as a "joke".
Earlier this week, reports suggested that the association had decided to appoint former Super Eagles defender Augustine Eguavoen as the national side's interim head coach, but according to The Nation, this is far from the case.
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The 58-year-old has been the NFF's technical director since 2020, but stepped out of the boardroom to manage the side as a caretaker manager between December 2021 and March 2022.
He led the Super Eagles at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon, but could only achieve a round of 16 finish after being knocked out of the tournament by Tunisia.
Eguavoen then returned to his executive position where he currently operates.
However, speculation this week suggested he would once more be Nigeria's temporary managerial solution following the departure of Peseiro, who guided the side to the final of AFCON 2023.
According to The Nation, though, the former player is not even among those being considered for the vacant role.
"There's nothing for Eguavoen as far as I know, and, in fact, nobody ever mentioned him in any capacity for the Super Eagles," an NFF source said, per the abovementioned publication.
"I think those guys are just joking. Nobody has mentioned Eguavoen as Super Eagles' interim manager."
Peseiro's contract came to an end last week, after which he released a statement in which he officially confirmed his departure.
The federation, however, are seemingly interested in retaining the Portuguese tactician's services until 2026, with it being said that an offer of R1.5 million a month has been tabled to his representatives.
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It is believed that the list of candidates to take over the vacant position include current Enyimba boss – and Peseiro's 2023 AFCON assistant – Finidi George, FIFA U-17 World Cup winner Emmanuel Amuneke, and former head coach of the national team Samson Siasia.
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