“I’m the coach of Nigeria, not Martigues” – Chelle defends Super Eagles salary demands

Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle has spoken openly about his reported salary demands as negotiations continue over a possible contract extension with the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Afrik-Foot reports.

Chelle’s current deal with Nigeria still has around one year remaining, but discussions have already started about keeping him in charge beyond that period.

The Franco-Malian tactician strengthened his position after guiding Nigeria to a third-place finish at the Africa Cup of Nations 2025, a result that impressed Nigerian football authorities and encouraged talks about a longer stay.

However, negotiations became public after a leaked contract proposal revealed a list of 19 demands submitted by the coach. The most debated issue has been his request for an increase in salary, from about $50,000 per month to $130,000.

Speaking on the Histoires de Foot Podcast, Chelle defended the request, insisting that the role of managing Nigeria comes with enormous responsibility and expectations.

“First of all, I’m not a coach of Martigues, with no disrespect to my former club FC Martigues. I am the coach of the Nigerian national team,” Chelle said.

“So we’re not talking about just anyone. They’re a major footballing nation. So there are great players on this team, very great players.

“I’m the coach of the Nigerian national team. And when I say it, I think you can feel the pride in that. Today, this is the greatest thing that has happened to me.”

Chelle explains how Super Eagles contract talks began

Chelle also stressed that discussions about improving his contract were not started by him alone.

According to the 48-year-old, Nigerian officials themselves initiated talks shortly after the AFCON campaign.

“What people forget or don’t know is that there is a contract that was written and agreed upon. I don’t think today is the day to say whether it was good or bad,” Chelle said, regarding his current working contract signed last year.

“It’s not something I asked for, it was the people from Nigeria who proposed it.

“And just as a side note: at the end of the match against Egypt, before an interview with Canal+ — or Bein, I don’t remember exactly; after the match I went for the interview, and the Nigerian Minister of Sports plus the customs director came to congratulate me.

“They told me, ‘Eric, after CAN (AFCON, but the french call it CAN), come to Nigeria, we need to discuss your contract.’

“I didn’t say that in the interview, but in the interview I mentioned that they told me to come back to Nigeria quickly. So I came back. I came back and there was a discussion.”

Despite the controversy surrounding the leaked document, Angola-linked Chelle confirmed he remains fully focused on his job with the Super Eagles.

The former defender says preparations have already begun for Nigeria’s upcoming international matches, including a four-nation invitational tournament in March where the Super Eagles are scheduled to face Jordan and Iran.