Former Sunshine Stars coach, Henry Makinwa, says economic hardship, corruption and poor management are responsible for the early exit of Nigerian clubs from Africa’s club competitions.
Rivers United and Shooting Stars have been eliminated from the CAF Champions League and the CAF Confederation Cup, respectively.
Makinwa said poor salaries remain a major factor as many top players in the Nigeria Premier Football League, NPFL, leave for neighboring countries, Europe and Asia in search of better remuneration, leaving local clubs weakened.
He also identified corruption in players recruitment as a critical problem.
“The many reasons Nigerian clubs crashed out of African Champions League earlier are economic factor: poor salaries and good players emigrate to nearby countries/ Europe/Asia.
“Corruptions on players recruitment, poor tecnical/tactical preparations,” Makinwa wrote on X.
Makinwa believes that Nigerian football needs professional management to restore its competitiveness on the continent.
