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🇳🇬 Nigeria /Sports

Pinnick Not Interested in Leading Nigeria Football Normalisation Committee

From ThisDay · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • A senior Nigerian sports official denied reports that former NFF president Amaju Pinnick would head a proposed Normalisation Committee.
  • The official said Pinnick told FIFA he wanted to focus on private business and his international football roles.
  • FIFA is expected to name the committee before the end of the week as Nigeria considers reforms to the NFF’s governance structures.

Amaju Pinnick does not want to lead the proposed committee charged with reforming Nigeria’s football administration, according to a senior sports official who dismissed reports of his possible appointment.

The official said he and Pinnick were in Zurich and that the former Nigeria Football Federation president had made his position clear to FIFA. “There is no truth in former NFF President, Amaju Pinnick coming back to head the Normalisation Committee. We were with him in Zurich yesterday and he was very specific in telling FIFA that he wants to be left alone to run his private business and enjoy his roles in global football circles,” the official said.

There is no truth in former NFF President, Amaju Pinnick coming back to head the Normalisation Committee. We were with him in Zurich yesterday and he was very specific in telling FIFA that he wants to be left alone to run his private business and enjoy his roles in global football circles.

— Senior Nigerian sports officialThe official denied reports that Pinnick would lead the proposed reform committee.

The official also defended Pinnick’s record at the NFF, saying he deserved praise rather than the hostile criticism directed at him by some stakeholders. He pointed to the sponsorship attracted during Pinnick’s tenure and said his contacts within the Confederation of African Football and FIFA continued to benefit Nigeria.

Pinnick deserves praises and not the toxic atmosphere that some persons have created around him.

— Senior Nigerian sports officialThe official defended Pinnick against criticism from football stakeholders.

Pinnick currently serves as an adviser to the CAF president and deputy chairman of the FIFA Men’s National Teams’ Competitions Committee. He is part of Nigeria’s delegation in Zurich, where officials are discussing the country’s football crisis after the resignation of the Ibrahim Gusau-led NFF board.

FIFA is expected to appoint a Normalisation Committee before the end of the week. Its main task will be to create a roadmap for sustainable football administration, including a review of the NFF statutes to accommodate wider interests beyond state football association chairmen and NFF allies.

While other countries pray to have someone with Pinnick’s high-networth in world football as their ambassadors, it is unfortunate that the opposite is the case in Nigeria.

— Senior Nigerian sports officialThe official argued that Pinnick’s international influence should benefit Nigeria.
About this summary

Originally published by ThisDay in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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