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Nigeria Might As Well Hire Me Next: Systemic Problems in African Hiring

by Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq.

Nigeria has appointed Swede Lars Lagerback as their new national team coach on a five-month contract. I’m still trying to figure out why. I wrote an earlier piece about African nations’ perpetual need to hire foreigners to lead African teams. With the firing of Nigerian Shaibu Amodu, there’s only one remaining African coach poised to lead a side at Africa’s first World Cup, Algeria’s Rabah Saadane.

This isn’t about xenophobia. It is about understanding why African FAs always end up paying so much money to foreigners who, more often than not, end up turning in the same results as local coaches.

Over the past few decades, the Nigerian coaching job has been just about as stable as the Nigerian Presidency. (more…)

Coaching | The Game
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Daily Banter – 3.2.2010

by Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq.

We’ll have a piece on this later in the week, but thought we’d throw this out now. Nigeria just appointed Swede Lars Lagerback to coach the national team on a five month contract, which obviously runs through the World Cup. Why do coaches with no experience in Africa keep getting appointed to lead African sides? Foreign coaches haven’t exactly had mind blowing results leading African sides, but they sure get paid a lot, and ultimately fired like everyone else.

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Daily Banter – 2.15.2010

by Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq.

Cotê d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) star Didier Drogba recently sent a letter to the Ivorian press apologizing for the team’s poor performance in the recent African Cup of Nations. Drogba’s letter was a sign of recognition that he knows how much the Ivorian team, nicknamed Les Éléphants, means to the Ivorian people. In the 2006 African Cup of Nations, the Ivorian team’s electric performances brought levels of civil unrest to a halt in Cotê d’Ivoire. (more…)

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Daily Banter – 1.9.2010

by Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq.

The attack on Togo players at the African Cup of Nations has raised some concerns.

Hull City coach, Phil Brown, suggests that this raises concerns about South Africa hosting the World Cup next year. Phil, Cabinda, Angola is very far from South Africa. That’s like expressing concern over fixtures in London because of problems in Madrid. I forgot that Africa was a country. Thanks for reminding us, Phil.

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Globalization

The Challenges of Playing Abroad – Sudanese Edition

by Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq.

Sudan Football Association

U.S. football fans are all too familiar with the “challenges” Landon Donovan faced when he first went to Germany. You know, he missed home and all. And we all know how Americans struggle to adapt to German culture. It’s soooo alien.

All jokes aside, adapting to new leagues and countries is a common issue in international football. But the stories that typically hit the wires usually involve players who can’t cope with the weather, or miss their families, or need to adapt to new cuisine, or languages. Ahem … José Antonio Reyes.

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Globalization | Outside the Lines
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Outside the Lines

Egyptian Recall

by Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq.

Egyptian Police

So just in case anyone out there doubts the craziness that is football or soccer, or whatever you want to call it, I give you Egypt.

Following defeat at the hands of Algeria for a World Cup spot, Egypt has recalled its ambassador from Algeria. To be fair, it seems that a fair amount of violence has been going down on both sides as a result of the tension brought about by the match.

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Outside the Lines | Politics
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Daily Banter 11.7.2009

by Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq.

Confederation of African Football And we have a Champions League winner!! TP Mazembe of the Democratic Republic of Congo beat Nigeria’s Heartland today to win their third Champions League title. For those of you keeping score at home, that’s THE Democratic Republic of Congo. The same DR Congo that conservatively has lost over 5,000,000 lives in the last 10 years.

That’s an interesting back drop for a story, but don’t hold your breath. We’ve got a financial crisis on our hands.

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