Gara-Gombe also dismissed the rumoured link between Chelle and Olympique Marseille and insisted his demands are unrealistic.
By Kehinde Okeowo
Former Gombe State Football Association chairman, Ahmed Shuaibu Gara-Gombe, has advised the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) not to yield to the antics of Super Eagles head coach, Eric Chelle.
The football administrator made this known during a recent interview with The Guardian.
Chelle, who is currently on a monthly salary of approximately $50,000, has less than a year remaining on his existing contract.
However, recent reports suggest that he has put forward 19 demands, including a substantial salary hike to $130,000, in exchange for extending his tenure with the team.
Reacting to the development, Gara-Gombe urged the NFF to let Chelle run down his contract if he rejects a fair deal, adding that granting his salary demand would be a mistake for Nigeria.
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He also accused the Malian tactician of leveraging his position after gaining international recognition through the Super Eagles.
“I don’t believe it is okay,” Gara-Gombe stated. “Chelle came to Nigeria to enhance his CV. The Super Eagles are too big for him. He wants to ‘blackmail’ us after the Super Eagles put him on a global stage.”
He added: “With the players Nigeria possesses, we should be the ones asking a coach like Eric Chelle to pay us a ‘privilege fee’.”
Gara-Gombe went on to dismiss the rumoured link between Chelle and Olympique Marseille as a fabricated narrative, insisting that the coach’s demands are unrealistic.
“If he wishes to leave, let him go. I haven’t seen any tangible impact from him on the Super Eagles. If we retain Chelle at this amount, Nigeria will regret it.”
