‘I will not be easily bullied’ - Emmanuel Amuneke lashes out at NFF after losing Super Eagles job

The 1994 Africa Footballer of the Year winner was the favourite to be picked as Jose Peseiro’s successor.

However, after the NFF decided to employ a Nigerian coach, they hired Amuneke’s former teammate Finidi George to be the Super Eagles head coach.

Amunike feels that certain football officials in the nation who still harbour animosity towards him because of previous conflicts are the reason he was manipulated out of the position.

According to reports from the Punch, Amuneke said, “They succeeded in smearing my name in the media because of the Eagles job.

“They can continue with their propaganda, but I will remain disciplined. It’s not do-or-die job. All those allegations made in the media online because of the Eagles' job are obviously not true, but those who recommended candidates for the job know I will not be easily bullied. I know there is still bad blood with these officials, but it's fine.”

The ex-Barcelona star asserts that these individuals might be in charge of looking into the "misleading reports in the media" that attempted to damage his reputation following his application to lead the national team.

Amunike appeared to have an advantage over Enyimba coach Finidi because of his resume, which included coaching clubs in Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Egypt. 

The legend also coached Nigeria's Under 17 team, leading them to win the FIFA U17 World Cup, as well as leading Tanzania to the 2019 AFCON. 

Despite his portfolio, the NFF decided to engage Finidi instead, claiming the necessity to preserve continuity after serving as Peseiro's right-hand man.