Fresh appointments have been approved by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) following the endorsement of recommendations made by the Federation’s Technical and Development Committee for the country’s youth national teams, Trybal News reports.
Experienced tactician Abdu Maikaba has been appointed head coach of the Nigeria national under 20 football team, while Eboboritse Uwejamomere will now take charge of the Nigeria national under 17 football team.
The appointments were confirmed by the Executive Committee of the NFF as part of efforts aimed at rebuilding and strengthening Nigeria’s youth football structure after disappointing performances in recent international competitions.
Maikaba returns to the national team setup with extensive experience gathered from managing several top Nigerian clubs. The soft spoken coach had previously handled the Golden Eaglets and also served as assistant coach of the Flying Eagles during the period when Paul Aigbogun led the team.
Over the years, Maikaba has been entrusted with the management of major clubs including Enyimba FC, Wikki Tourists, Kano Pillars and Plateau United. One of his biggest achievements came in 2017 when Akwa United were guided to victory in the country’s oldest football competition, now known as the President Federation Cup.
Meanwhile, Uwejamomere arrives with a strong background in technical analysis and youth development. For several years, he has worked as a coach analyst with the Nigeria national football team and has also been involved with the Nigeria women’s national football team.
At club level, he currently serves as academy head at Sporting Lagos, who recently secured promotion back to the Nigeria Premier Football League. His coaching development journey has also included youth roles in England with Millwall FC, Gillingham FC and Nottingham Forest FC, alongside a previous spell as head coach of Stormers FC in Abeokuta.
The appointments come at a crucial period for Nigeria’s youth teams, especially the Golden Eaglets, who have struggled in recent years despite remaining the most successful nation in the history of the FIFA U17 World Cup with five titles won in 1985, 1993, 2007, 2013 and 2015.
Nigeria last appeared at the tournament in 2019, where the Golden Eaglets reached the Round of 16 in Brazil before elimination. Since then, qualification has been missed for both the 2023 and 2025 editions.
The Flying Eagles have also faced setbacks. Their most recent FIFA U20 World Cup campaign ended in disappointment after a heavy 4-0 defeat to Argentina national under 20 football team in the Round of 16 of the 2025 tournament in Chile. Goals from Alejo Sarco, Maher Carrizo, who scored twice, and Mateo Silvetti secured the win in Santiago and ended Nigeria’s campaign. The result also served as revenge for Argentina after their defeat to Nigeria at the 2023 edition.
With both appointments now confirmed, renewed expectations will be placed on the new coaching crews to restore Nigeria’s dominance at youth level and guide the teams back to consistent success on the international stage.
