Sports

Gombe-Gara Rejects Chelle $130,000 monthly salary

Published

6 months ago

February 23, 2026

As expected, the alleged $130,000 monthly salary demanded by Super Eagles coach, Eric Chelle, has drawn the ire of Nigerian, who feel betrayed that the coach demanded such a colossal amount.

Chelle, on Thursday, tabled new demands from the Federal Government for him to remain with the Super Eagles. Top on his demand is a house, car, 24-hour constant electricity supply, flight tickets for his wife and children and free hand to run the team.

For former Chairman of Gombe State Football Association, Ahmed Shuaibu Gara-Gombe, everything is wrong in Chelle’s new demand.

“I don’t think it is okay,” Gara-Gombe told The Guardian. “This man just came to Nigeria to boost his CV. I said it before that Super Eagles is too big for Chelle.

“The Super Eagles raised Chelle to the global stage not him raising the team, and he now wants to ‘blackmail’ us.

“With the players Nigeria have, we are even the ones to ask a coach like Eric Chelle to pay us ‘privileged fees’.

“It is so obvious now that Chelle just created a phantom story around Olympique Marseilles that they were after his service, and a few days after, his ridiculous demands came. We are not fools. I read the demands, they are ridiculous. While at the AFCON in Morocco, Chelle started his phantom story that Algeria wanted his services and the Olympique Marseilles story followed. If he wants to go, let him go. I have not seen any impact he made on the Super Eagles.”

Gara-Gombe added: “Chelle is just lucky we are tip toeing and winning Games because of the players’ brilliance, not because of his impact.

We have polished him as a Coach. We have turned him into reckoning and now he wants to ‘blackmail us. If we retain this man for this amount, Nigeria will regret it,” he stated.

Former Super Eagles midfielder, Edema Fuludu, agrees with Gara-Gombe.

Speaking with Tidesports source, Fuludu said: “I want to believe that people are behind his demands the Nigeria way. It is disheartening to know that a coach who came to Nigeria with a low profile pedigree and fortunate to have a pool of such quality players to prosecute games, got a bronze medal, has been celebrated as if he won the AFCON.

Why won’t he make unreasonable demands?
“We have come to the threshold of anything goes for our football. Let us invest in coaching education and make our home grown coaches by training and retraining, with financial encouragement in remuneration that commensurate what foreigners get for better performance.

“I think we should allow Chelle to go irrespective of the outcome of the World Cup protest against DR Congo,” Fuludu stated.

However, former Green Eagles winger, Adegoke Adelabu, now a sports scientist, said the coach has the right to demand for any amount as wage or allowance.

“It is left to the NFF to decide whether he deserves such amount. Characteristically, we focus so much on going for competitions at all cost and not necessarily developing the national team professionally. You could see in his demands that he wants to be in complete control of the invitation and selection of the team without any interference.

“A forward looking organisation ought to have known whether we are retaining him or not depending on whether he met the objectives of the federation. The way he spelt out his demands showed that there is a problem with the running of the national team.

“We need to train our own coaches. We have enough retired footballers that we should be able to educate them scientifically to handle our national team players. My problem is not about his demands, but the NFF should tell us whether he is capable of building a befitting national team of our dream. Up till now the Federal govt turned deaf ears to the failure of the NFF despite the amount of money pumped into the training and development of the team for the World Cup. Everyone kept mute as if nothing happened,” Adelabu added.

An NFF official who pleaded anonymity, revealed that Chelle did not fulfil the main terms of the contract given to him by the NFF when he signed the contract to coach the Super Eagles last year.

“If Chelle wants to leave, he should come out boldly and tell the NFF instead of this outrageous demand of $130,000. Now, let me reveal the main two targets given to Chelle by the NFF when he signed the contract last year. First, he was told to qualify Nigeria for the 2026 World Cup and second, qualify the team for the final of 2025 AFCON tournament in Morocco. Did he fulfil these two? The answer is no.”

His inability to qualify the Nigeria for the 2026 World Cup notwithstanding, some Nigerians are of the opinion that Chelle tried his best considering Super Eagles’ poor position before he took over.

Sports

Rivers-born Chess Player Clinches Third Position At World Amateur Rapid Chess Championship

Published

2 days ago

August 10, 2026

The Tide

A veteran Rivers State chess player, Apollos Akomaka, has finished in joint 3rd place at the just-concluded World Amateur Rapid Chess Championship held in Abuja.

Akomaka, who is the director of physiotherapy at the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital, Port Harcourt, overcame a shaky start to secure a podium finish in the 11-round rapid event that began on August 2.

The tournament featured top chess players from several countries.

After losing his opening game, the defining moment for Akomaka came between Rounds 7 and 11.

He raised his game and began defeating some of the top-ranked players in the event.

The Rivers-born player ended the championship tied for 3rd place in the U2000 category with 6.5 points out of 11, alongside Cameroon’s national champion, Noumbo Vidal.

His final game was against Vidal, with the Nigerian playing the black pieces.

Vidal opened with a queen’s gambit but quickly transposed into an English opening with a double fianchetto attack.

Akomaka responded sharply with a king’s Indian defense and soon launched a kingside attack from a defensive position.

The pressure paid off, resulting in an immediate material gain, a knight for a rook, and leaving Akomaka with a strong attacking advantage.

Vidal fought hard to avoid mate and managed to steer the game into an endgame, where he found some respect. At that point, the Cameroon champion offered a draw, which Akomaka accepted.

Speaking after the event, Akomaka said that he is resilient and determined after the poor start but happy that he finished on the podium.

He expressed optimism that in subsequent competitions he will make Rivers State proud and Nigeria at large.

Akomaka has won both local and national chess championships in recent times.

He is passionate about chess; besides, he has equally sponsored several national chess tournaments in Nigeria.

The World Amateur Rapid Chess Championship concluded with Akomaka of Rivers State,

Nigeria, battling back from an early loss to end among the top three in his category

Tonye Orabere/Kiadum Edookor

Sports

Team Nigeria Secures Women’s 4x100m, 4x400m Finals at World U20 Championships

Published

2 days ago

August 10, 2026

The Tide

Team Nigeria continued its impressive showing at the World Athletics U20 Championships in Eugene, securing places in both the women’s 4x100m and 4x400m relay finals after strong performances in the heats.

The Nigerian quartet of Becky Ebiyadi, Jecinta Lawrence, Tejiri Praise Ugoh and Faith Ezechukwu booked their place in the women’s 4x400m final after clocking a season’s best of 3:35.28.

Nigeria finished third in the heat behind Italy and Great Britain, doing enough to advance to the final and remain firmly in contention for a medal.

In the women’s 4x100m, Ugoh joined Lucy Nwankwo, Chigozie Nwankwo and Oluebube Ezechukwu as Nigeria produced another season’s best, clocking 43.65 seconds to secure an automatic ticket to the women’s 4x100m final.

The qualification was sealed by a sensational anchor leg from Ezechukwu. Receiving the baton nearly 20 metres behind the United States, the Nigerian launched a determined charge down the home straight, rapidly closing the gap before edging the Americans at the line to claim the third automatic qualifying position.

Nigeria stopped the clock at 43.65 seconds, just 0.02 seconds ahead of the United States, who finished in 43.67 seconds.

The performances mean Nigeria will now contest both women’s relay finals, further strengthening the country’s medal prospects at the championships.

In Saturday’s evening phase of the event, Success Uyibo will compete in the 200m women’s final while the 4x100m compete in the women’s final.

Sports

Poor welfare forced me to dump Delta for Enugu, says world – Nwachukwu

Published

2 days ago

August 10, 2026

The Tide

World Record holder and Commonwealth Games champion, Goodness Nwachukwu, has revealed why she dumped Delta State for Enugu State.

The sudden departure of Nwachukwu, a multiple gold medallist, from Team Delta to the Coal City, Enugu , sparked controversy within the sports family, with officials of Delta State Sports Commission accusing the president of the Paralympic Committee of Nigeria, Sunday Odebode, of manipulating the system for the athlete to dump the state.

But Nwachukwu, who broke the World Record to win a gold medal for Team Nigeria in the Women’s Discus F42 event at the just-concluded Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, has cleared the air on the circumstances that led to her movement to Enugu State.

Speaking with The Tidesports source report, shortly after winning the gold medal, Nwachukwu said: “It is not true that anybody aided my movement from Delta State to Enugu. Rather, it was Delta State that forced me to leave because of poor remuneration.