Coach
Gernot Rohr has warned against another pay strike at the World Cup if the
country hoped to improve on their previous outings at the global
tournament.FIFA
At the
2014 World Cup, the Super Eagles skipped a training to protest the non-payment
of bonus for qualifying for the tournament forcing the country's sports
minister to fly out by private jet to pay them almost $4 million cash in
Brazil.
Rohr said
he believes the three-time African champions can improve on their best World
Cup performance of a Round of 16 by better and early preparation as well as
ensuring money issues are sorted out well in advance.
Nigeria
will be paid a total of $12.5 million by FIFA for qualifying for Russia 2018
with $2.5 million of this amount paid for the Eagles to prepare adequately for
the football showpiece.
They will
earn more cash should they reach the knockout rounds of the tournament as they
have done in 1994 and 2014.
Nigeria
have so far used a total of 37 players for the qualifying tournament for Russia
2018 and they are all entitled to a share of a qualification bonus.
Rohr, a 64-year-old Franco-German coach, said he believes that with a fully
prepared and united team both on and off the pitch, Nigeria can expect their
best performance at next year's tournament.
"If
we want to do something at the World Cup, we have to prepare well," he
said.
"We
want everybody who wants to be part of the team to show the same solidarity we
currently have in the team.
"More
importantly, we don't want the issue of money to be a problem.
"The
issue of bonuses and allowances, which are the usual African problem we see
during the World Cup, must be avoided.
"Such
issues will be bad for our preparation.
"I
have told my officials and the federation president that all (such issues) be
cleared before the start of the competition."
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