Mikel says Eguavoen manages like Ancelotti as Eagles coach attends CAF symposium with Okocha in Abidjan

Former Chelsea midfielder John Mikel Obi has praised Super Eagles caretaker coach, Augustine Eguavoen for his ability to get the best out of his players.

Mikel played under Eguavoen at the U-17 level before graduating to the U-20 side.

The 37-year-old then made his senior debut for the Super Eagles under the former defender in 2005.

The former Lyn Oslo of Norway player was named in Nigeria’s squad for the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt.

The Super Eagles finished in third position at the tournament.

Eguavoen is now in charge of the Super Eagles for the fourth time.

“I know the interim manager now, Augustine Eguavoen, who managed me when I was a kid. U-17, he was my coach, took us to the World Cup,” he said on Obi One Podcast.

“Fantastic guy, lovely guy, a manager who gives you all the freedom in the world to express yourself, speaks to you well.

“He reminds me so much of Carlo Ancelotti, no jokes about that, his man management is top. He speaks to players well. He is so humble. He communicates with players well and puts his arm around you.

“He gets his players on his side, that’s so important. You could see coming in on short notice and getting the team to play so well. You can’t teach them so much in such a short space of time.”

Eguavoen and Super Eagles legend Austine Jay Jay Okocha are amongst a long list of former African stars who will grace the 2023 CAF coaches symposium.

The symposium will be held in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire from Thursday, September 12 to Friday, September 13.

Football icons El-Hadj Diouf, Antoine Bell, Mark Fish and Otto Addo will also grace the event.

They will also be joined by Fulham legend Luis Boa Morte, who is the current coach of Guinea-Bissau, and Senegal’s Pape Thiaw, among others at the two-day event.

The symposium will mark the first-ever such meeting of African coaches, with 50 national team coaches from across CAF’s Member Associations expected to attend.

It will provide a platform for an exchange of ideas and experiences among Africa’s top coaches.