Sports
Nasarawa United Appoints New Technical Adviser
The announcement, made on Wednesday during a brief ceremony at the Ministry of Youth and Sports Development in Lafia, marks a new chapter for the Solid Miners as they look to build on their performance from last season.
Mbwas takes over from Coach Salisu Yusuf, who parted ways with the club by mutual agreement and has since taken up a new coaching role in the Republic of Benin. Yusuf was credited with helping Nasarawa United avoid relegation during the just-concluded season.
A seasoned tactician, the 47-year-old Mbwas hails from Plateau State and brings a wealth of experience, having managed top-tier clubs such as Heartland FC of Owerri, Wikki Tourists of Bauchi, and Enugu Rangers. He holds a CAF B coaching licence and recently led Plateau United to a 7th-place finish in the NPFL.
Club Chairman, Mr Solomon Babanjah, expressed confidence in the new coach’s ability to take the club to greater heights.
“We are excited to welcome Coach Mangut Mbwas, who is one of the finest coaches in the country, into the Nasarawa United family,” Babanjah stated. “His appointment marks the beginning of a fresh chapter as we aim for improved performance and possibly a continental ticket this season. His coaching philosophy aligns with the club’s long-term vision.”
Also speaking, Coach Mangut Mbwas expressed delight over the appointment and promised to justify the confidence reposed in him.
“I am aware that many qualified coaches applied for this job, so I feel privileged to be chosen,” Mbwas said. “We have strategic plans in place, and we intend to act differently this season to achieve the desired results. The support from government and stakeholders gives me assurance that success is within reach.”
He added that his goal is to return Nasarawa United to continental football and hinted at fortifying the team with a few exceptional players to improve competitiveness.
Commissioner for Youth and Sports Development, Hon. Kwanta Yakubu, described the appointment as timely and strategic.
“Our club is making history today with the unveiling of a technically sound and globally experienced coach,” he said. “We did our research before presenting his name to our sports-loving Governor, who gave his approval.”
“We will not interfere with your technical duties,” Kwanta noted. “You have the liberty to recruit players from anywhere in the world to improve the squad.”
Others present at the unveiling ceremony included the Director of Sports, Mallam Ubah Musa; Chairman of Nasarawa State Football Association, Mr Salisu Galadima; Board Members of Nasarawa United FC; members of the club’s coaching crew; and representatives of the supporters’ club.
Nasarawa United is currently participating in the Gusau/Ahlan Pre-Season Cup in Lafia. The team is set to begin their 2025/26 NPFL campaign with an away fixture against Niger Tornadoes on Sunday, August 24, in Minna—Coach Mbwas’s first official test in charge of the Solid Miners.
A well-known football pundit in the State, Chief Christopher Okonkwo has lauded the efforts and vision of the Super Eagles Coach Eric Chelle for going from one venue of the Nigeria Domestic Nigeria Professional Football League match to the other in monitoring Nigerian players, with a view to invite some exceptional good one discovered into the main stream of the Super Eagles team.
Okonkwo, who made the commendation in an interview at the Port Harcourt Club recently, described the positive move by Coach Chelle as a good step in the right direction, noting that the practice was how its been done in the past among any contracted coach assigned to tinker the Super Eagles team.
“Truly, it has been an old tradition in the country seeing any newly engaged Coach to lead the National team, visiting some our Nigeria League venues during the league matches to spot light some good talents that could be used to beef up some grey areas in the department of Eagles team”
He, however, frowned at the current situation where our coaches had continously been over depending on the use of foreign based players during invitation of players to the National camp, thereby, relegating the domestic home based league players to the background as if they have nothing much to offer to the team.
“I can vividly recall that the likes of great players in the mode of Finidi George, Taribo West, Kanu Nwankwo, Austin Okocha, Richard Owobokiri, Emmanuel Osuigwe among others started from Nigeria football league before they graduated to play in Europe through which they later invited to Super Eagles camp to represent Nigeria”
“Besides, I’m also of the view that going to secondary school football competitive games could equally serves as a a good platform to discover budding talents that could be nurtured to become great stars in near future”, Okonkwo frankly added.
Okonkwo, therefore, prayed that any football coach to be engaged by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to tinker the Super Eagles should be told not to confine himself in staying in big hotel alone but to be visiting some of our local league match venues, with a view to discover some good players that can be drafted into the Super Eagles team.
“Indeed, I stand to be challenged that there some young good players in the Nigeria Professional League. If spotted and exposed, could give the some of the invited foreign based players a stiff competitive fight in securing a postion in the team”, Okonkwo emphatically stated.
Ezechukwu, one of the youngest members of the Nigerian contingent at the championship in Ghana, said her ambition was to win the 100m title in style and cap it with a new personal record.
The fresh secondary school graduate explained that she is fully focused on contributing to Team Nigeria’s medal hopes and is determined to deliver strong performances across her events.
“My main objective in Ghana is to clinch the 100m title and the 4×100m,” Ezechukwu told Tidesports source.
“Nigeria can be assured of my very best and my commitment to the Team. I would love to set a new personal best in Ghana, but anything that comes, I will take it. The spirit in the team is high, and I think we are ready to go,” she said.
Ezechukwu, who was part of Nigeria’s women’s 4x100m relay squad at the World Relays in Botswana, said the experience gained from that competition has strengthened her mindset heading into the continental championships.
She admitted that she learned valuable lessons from her previous outing, including a difficult moment during the relay where an early error affected the team’s rhythm, but said she has used the experience to improve her discipline and composure.
“The secret is just being disciplined, training hard and trusting my coach and believing in God, and the result will show,” she added.
The teenager is part of a 41-member Nigerian team comprising 24 female and 17 male athletes competing at the championships, which begin today at the University of Ghana, Legon.
Nigeria are expected to compete across multiple track and field events as they aim for a strong finish against the continent’s elite athletes.
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