Plateau United Turn to Ogunbote to Escape Relegation Trouble

Plateau United have moved swiftly to arrest their poor run in the 2025/26 Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) season, turning to experienced coach Gbenga Ogunbote in a bid to steer the club away from the relegation zone. The Jos-based side, struggling for results, have appointed Ogunbote a seasoned Nigerian league tactician to lead their survival push as the second stanza of the campaign unfolds.

Ogunbote’s appointment comes amid Plateau United’s difficult run, with the club seeking to reverse fortunes and climb up the league standings. Known for his NPFL pedigree  including spells with clubs such as Enyimba, Sunshine Stars and Remo Stars the head coach will be tasked with revitalising a side that has found itself mired in inconsistent form and results.

Editorial

In the unforgiving terrain of the Nigeria Premier Football League, survival is wrought not just through talent but through leadership steeped in experience. Plateau United’s decision to bring in Gbenga Ogunbote amid a spiralling relegation fight is more than a mere change of manager it is a declaration of intent from a club confronting its moment of truth.

Ogunbote arrives not as a figure of novelty but one of familiarity, his career a testament to the cycles that define the NPFL. In a league where momentum can evaporate overnight and confidence is currency, his steady hand and lived knowledge of Nigerian football’s rhythms are assets most teams would covet. The timing of his appointment in the thick of a survival battle — imbues his role with urgency.

For Plateau United, the narrative up to this point has been one of promise unfulfilled. Once regular participants in the upper reaches of the NPFL table, they have this season found themselves undulating in form, unable to string together the results that stave off the spectre of relegation. In this crucible, Ogunbote’s task is not to reinvent but to refine to instil structure, bolster belief and coax performance from players whose confidence has been tested.

This is not an unfamiliar story in Nigerian football teams that once aspired to continental prominence find themselves fighting for top-flight survival seasoned coaches return as custodians of hope. Yet under this familiar script, there lies a deeper truth about football’s appeal that the measure of a squad’s character is often revealed at its lowest ebb, and that leadership can be the catalyst for resurgence.

In entrusting Ogunbote with their survival bid, Plateau United acknowledge that experience is not just about past laurels, but about the capacity to navigate present turbulence. What follows next the training pitches, tactical tweaks, and collective resolve will test both coach and players alike. In a league defined by fine margins, this engagement with adversity is the crucible from which renewed ambition must emerge.

Did You Know?

1. Gbenga Ogunbote has managed several NPFL clubs, including Enyimba, Remo Stars, Sunshine Stars and Shooting Stars, bringing wide experience of the league.
2. Plateau United struggled early in the season, beginning the campaign without a win after their initial NPFL fixtures, leaving them teetering near the relegation zone.
3. The club’s survival fight mirrors other NPFL stories this season, where even established teams have found themselves dragged into relegation battles due to inconsistent form.
4. NPFL clubs often change coaches mid-season as a mechanism to spark improved results a trend seen across several teams in recent campaigns.
5. Ogunbote’s return to Plateau United reunites him with NPFL survival narratives, having previously been brought into struggling sides in the league to steady performance.