Herve Renard, two-time winner of the Africa Cup of Nations, has revealed that he turned down an offer to manage one of Africa's biggest teams.
Renard is currently without a job after serving nearly a year-and-a-half as the France women's national team head coach.
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The 56-year-old left the role in August after an underwhelming quarter-final finish at the 2024 Paris Olympics, with his side having been dumped out of the competition by eventual silver medallists Brazil.
Renard has now revealed that he had the opportunity to jump straight back into management with 2023 AFCON runners-up Nigeria.
"I almost went to Nigeria," the French tactician told L'Equipe.
"I weighed the pros and cons for several days, even weeks, before deciding to turn it down.
"It was the best offer I had received, but ultimately, it wasn't the right fit for me."
Renard has previously guided Zambia and Ivory Coast to the 2012 and 2015 AFCON titles, respectively.
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has been in search of a new coach since the departure of Finidi George after just two games in charge in June.
It initially seemed that the NFF would hire German coach Bruno Labbadia but that deal fell apart due to contractual differences, with tax-related issues said to have been a key point of contention.
Currently, caretaker boss Augustine Eguavoen holds the fort as the Super Eagles have back-to-back matches against Libya in their next 2025 AFCON qualifiers.
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The two matches will be played on 11 and 15 October.