Why we prefer expatriates to local coaches – Kumbi
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- Category: Sports
- Written by David Ngobua
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The administrator of Kwara Football Academy, Mr. Kumbi Titiloye says the preference for expatriate technical directors is to avoid some of the problems usually associated with indigenous coaches.
What is your primary responsibility as administrator of Kwara Football Academy?
My primary responsibility as administrator of Kwara Football Academy is to make the academy to be self sustaining. To make it realize the vision of the state governor, Dr. Bukola Saraki, where by kids are trained, nurtured and enmeshed in soccer skills with the view to engaging them in local, national, sub-regional and international contracts as professional footballers. Recently we embarked on a training tour to Belgium where six of the players have been spotted and would be going for trials in Sweden. We also have another programme which is to engage them in the Nigeria Premier League. We believe that come next football season, at least twelve of our boys will playing in the domestic league.What steps have you taken to make the academy self financing?
Immediately I was appointed, we went to England to interview a technical director to head the technical department. In the process, I went and met Sir David Richards, the Chairman of the English Premier League who has been very supportive of Nigerian football. Our governor asked me to invite him to Kwara State. He visited our academy and watched the boys. He was impressed with what he saw. Very soon, we are going to have a letter of endorsement of Kwara Football Academy by the Chairman of the English Premier League. In this regard, we are already in top flight discussions with international organizations to partner with us. Hopefully, by the end of this month, we must have tided up one or two international agreements. They will inject funds into the academy and at the end of every year, they will have first right of refusal to come and take a look at our boys. If they are interested in any, they will be given a professional contract. We believe that once the academy has international outlook, it will attract our local corporate sponsors.
Why the preference for expatriate technical directors, it appears you do not have enough confidence in the technical abilities of indigenous coaches?
To be very frank with you, we have good coaches in Nigeria who can do the job but as you and I know, Nigeria is a very challenging terrain. You find out that since Kwara Football Academy is a free school, the students don’t pay any money. Now there will be too much interest for people to get into the school because the boys get free secondary school education and they are trained in the area of football. In the Nigerian factor, these coaches get so much pressure in terms of financial inducements by interested parties who want their wards into the academy. I am not saying it is done but some of them might cave in and bring in boys who are not really good. Another reason we go for foreign coaches is because our coaches are good but not well trained. They do not have the requisite training that their counterparts in Europe have. The technical director we have is the trainers’ trainer. He is going to train our coaches. Although they will not be certified by UEFA, they will receive the same training. So the five coaches we have presently will be trained by the newly appointed technical director, Paul Ashworth. We are killing two birds with one stone. We import the expertise and feed our local coaches and at the same time cut out corruption, inducements and local pressure.
What do you require from the board of trustees that has been constituted for the academy?
Members of the board of trustees are eminent Nigerians. Most of them are successful businessmen. The way they will make my work easy is by supporting us when we get sponsorship interest from our local corporate sponsors. It will be easy for us to tap into their good will and network to get these things done.
Why we prefer expatriates to local coaches – Kumbi
Category: Sports Written by David Ngobua Hits: 946
The administrator of Kwara Football Academy, Mr. Kumbi Titiloye says the preference for expatriate technical directors is to avoid some of the problems usually associated with indigenous coaches.
What is your primary responsibility as administrator of Kwara Football Academy?
My primary responsibility as administrator of Kwara Football Academy is to make the academy to be self sustaining. To make it realize the vision of the state governor, Dr. Bukola Saraki, where by kids are trained, nurtured and enmeshed in soccer skills with the view to engaging them in local, national, sub-regional and international contracts as professional footballers. Recently we embarked on a training tour to Belgium where six of the players have been spotted and would be going for trials in Sweden. We also have another programme which is to engage them in the Nigeria Premier League. We believe that come next football season, at least twelve of our boys will playing in the domestic league.What steps have you taken to make the academy self financing?
Immediately I was appointed, we went to England to interview a technical director to head the technical department. In the process, I went and met Sir David Richards, the Chairman of the English Premier League who has been very supportive of Nigerian football. Our governor asked me to invite him to Kwara State. He visited our academy and watched the boys. He was impressed with what he saw. Very soon, we are going to have a letter of endorsement of Kwara Football Academy by the Chairman of the English Premier League. In this regard, we are already in top flight discussions with international organizations to partner with us. Hopefully, by the end of this month, we must have tided up one or two international agreements. They will inject funds into the academy and at the end of every year, they will have first right of refusal to come and take a look at our boys. If they are interested in any, they will be given a professional contract. We believe that once the academy has international outlook, it will attract our local corporate sponsors.
Why the preference for expatriate technical directors, it appears you do not have enough confidence in the technical abilities of indigenous coaches?
To be very frank with you, we have good coaches in Nigeria who can do the job but as you and I know, Nigeria is a very challenging terrain. You find out that since Kwara Football Academy is a free school, the students don’t pay any money. Now there will be too much interest for people to get into the school because the boys get free secondary school education and they are trained in the area of football. In the Nigerian factor, these coaches get so much pressure in terms of financial inducements by interested parties who want their wards into the academy. I am not saying it is done but some of them might cave in and bring in boys who are not really good. Another reason we go for foreign coaches is because our coaches are good but not well trained. They do not have the requisite training that their counterparts in Europe have. The technical director we have is the trainers’ trainer. He is going to train our coaches. Although they will not be certified by UEFA, they will receive the same training. So the five coaches we have presently will be trained by the newly appointed technical director, Paul Ashworth. We are killing two birds with one stone. We import the expertise and feed our local coaches and at the same time cut out corruption, inducements and local pressure.
What do you require from the board of trustees that has been constituted for the academy?
Members of the board of trustees are eminent Nigerians. Most of them are successful businessmen. The way they will make my work easy is by supporting us when we get sponsorship interest from our local corporate sponsors. It will be easy for us to tap into their good will and network to get these things done.