Rangers International Head Coach, Fidelis Ilechukwu, has declared that his assistant coaches at the club are the best he has ever worked with, despite the team’s struggles this season, Completesports.com reports.
Ekenedilichukwu Ekeh and Ben Ugwu (aka ‘Surugede’) are part of Ilechukwu’s coaching staff at the Coal City Flying Antelopes.
Ilechukwu, a former coach of MFM FC, Plateau United, and Heartland, made the revelation on Thursday night after his side suffered a 1-0 home defeat to Plateau United in a NPFL matchday 31 fixture at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu.
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A 73rd-minute strike from Suleiman Morejeola handed Rangers their fourth home loss of the season, a historic low for the seven-time Nigerian champions.
‘My Assistants Are The Best’ – Ilechukwu
Addressing concerns about whether his commitments with the Super Eagles have distracted him from his club duties, Ilechukwu dismissed such notions, affirming confidence in his assistants.
“I have capable assistants. These coaches have done well—really well. At least, I have lost a game while present on the touchline. That’s football,” Ilechukwu said.
“I’ll give credit to them. They are the best assistant coaches I have ever worked with. What happened to Rangers is simply football, and we must take it in good faith.”
For the first time in their 55-year history, Rangers have lost four home games in a single league season, drawing twice—while the campaign is still ongoing.
Their defeats at home came against Kano Pillars, Niger Tornadoes, Shooting Stars, and Plateau United, while they also dropped points in draws against Akwa United and El-Kanemi Warriors.
Title Defence Under Threat
These setbacks have seriously dented the club’s title defence, as they currently sit fifth on the table with 45 points, a 15-point gap behind league leaders Remo Stars, who have 60 points with seven games remaining.
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When asked about the club’s poor home form, Ilechukwu maintained that injuries and challenging periods are part of football.
“There’s no problem with Rangers—it’s just football. Even Manchester City are the English Premier League defending champions, but ask yourself, what is happening there now?” he argued.
“Every team faces challenges. Right now, we are using our third set of midfielders. We’ve lost many players to injuries—Kazeem Ogunleye and some strikers too. Those playing now were meant to be gradually integrated into the squad, but football forced us to accelerate their development. They’ve tried, but they haven’t converted the chances they got.”
Top-Three Finish Still Possible
Despite the setbacks, Ilechukwu remains optimistic about securing a CAF interclub competition spot next season.
“It’s 100 per cent possible. It may seem impossible to you, but for me as a coach, it is very, very possible,” he said confidently.
“We are still on top of our game. This was one of our best performances, but in terms of converting chances, it was one of our worst. That’s football. We won’t give up. We lost today, but we congratulate Plateau United. They did well to get three points here. We will go back, review the game, restrategise, and see how to improve in the next match.”
‘We Were Unlucky’ – Ilechukwu
Reflecting on the loss to Plateau United, Ilechukwu lamented missed chances in the keenly contested encounter.
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“I think we were unlucky. We got into their 18-yard box 15 times but couldn’t score. They entered our box only four times and got one goal. That’s football for you.”
On Isaac Saviour’s Return From Injury
Ilechukwu also explained why he fielded Isaac Saviour, who had been out injured.
“Yes, Silas was not fully fit, but I told him he would play 15-20 minutes because Plateau United is his former club. It was a way of gradually reintegrating him into the team,” he concluded.
By Sab Osuji
Ilechukwu: ‘Mijn assistenten bij Rangers zijn de beste’ Ondanks tegenslagen – NPFL
De Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) is een competitie die bekend staat om zijn intense rivaliteit en competitieve wedstrijden. Een van de clubs die regelmatig in de schijnwerpers staat, is Enugu Rangers International FC, een team dat bekend staat om zijn gepassioneerde fans en getalenteerde spelers.
De club heeft de afgelopen jaren echter te maken gehad met tegenslagen, waaronder een verandering in management en een reeks teleurstellende resultaten op het veld. Ondanks deze uitdagingen blijft het team echter vastberaden om terug te vechten en succes te behalen.
Een van de sleutelfiguren die hebben bijgedragen aan de veerkracht van het team is coach Benedict Ilechukwu. Ilechukwu, die eerder succesvol was bij zijn voormalige club MFM FC, trad begin dit seizoen toe tot Rangers als assistent-coach. Ondanks de moeilijkheden waarmee het team te maken heeft gehad, blijft hij optimistisch over de toekomst.
In een recent interview sprak Ilechukwu vol lof over zijn assistenten bij Rangers, die hij beschreef als de beste die hij ooit heeft gehad. Hij prees hun toewijding, professionaliteit en tactisch inzicht, en benadrukte hoe belangrijk hun bijdrage is geweest aan het team.
“De assistenten bij Rangers zijn echt fantastisch,” zei Ilechukwu. “Ze werken keihard en zijn altijd bereid om te helpen, of het nu gaat om trainingen, wedstrijden of tactische besprekingen. Ik ben echt dankbaar voor hun steun en ik geloof dat we samen veel kunnen bereiken.”
Ondanks de tegenslagen waarmee Rangers te maken heeft gehad, blijft Ilechukwu vastbesloten om het team naar succes te leiden. Hij gelooft dat met de steun van zijn assistenten en de vastberadenheid van de spelers, Rangers in staat zal zijn om zich te herstellen en weer mee te doen om de titel in de NPFL.
Het is duidelijk dat coach Ilechukwu en zijn assistenten een sterke band hebben opgebouwd en samenwerken om het beste uit het team te halen. Met hun vastberadenheid en toewijding zullen ze ongetwijfeld blijven streven naar succes en Rangers naar nieuwe hoogten leiden in de Nigeria Professional Football League.
