AFCON 2013: Keshi Clears The Air On Quit Threat

Stephen-Keshi580Super Eagles Coach, Stephen Keshi, came under fire recently when he hinted the AFCON 2013 finals might be his last outing in charge of Nigeria’s national team.

Keshi dropped the bombshell at a press conference in Durban on Tuesday and following the controversy his announcement elicited, he has now moved to clarify his comments.

“It doesn’t really matter what people think about what Stephen Keshi is doing. The most important thing is what I am doing here and passing on to my team. If back home in my country, they don’t appreciate what I am doing with the team, so be it,” Keshi explained.

It was widely reported that Keshi fell out with top officials of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) following the Super Eagles’ draw in their first two games of the competition with the former national team captain threatening to walk out on the team after the sports minister reportedly mooted the idea of hiring a foreign technical adviser.

Keshi also hinted in a thinly-veiled remark that there is no love lost between him and the NFF officials.

“You can’t force somebody to love you. You can’t force somebody to accept you. It has to come from within,” he stated.

Following his 10-year coaching stint which has seen him manage the Togo and Mali national sides, Keshi stressed that he could be on the verge of a move from his current post after the 2013 Afcon.

“We are all professionals. If God grants me (the Afcon title with Nigeria today), the very next day, I might pack my things and leave for another country.

“It is the same thing with (Jose) Mourinho and all the other top coaches in the world. I could stay on and I could leave. It depends on the situation.

“I am a professional and we will see how it goes.

“This is where my heart is, I captained the Super Eagles for 14 years. I have been here as assistant coach. I am here for now but after the tournament, we will see if there is any (offer) out there,” he concluded.

3 COMMENTS

  1. The problem with our administrators (sports) is that of impatience. Only God is perfect. But in our case they are not ready to tolerate what looks like imperfection. Assuming they sacked Keshi on the basis of the not too impressive performance of our players in the first two matches at the group stage we wouldn’t have seen the best of our players. Let us learn to exercise patience with our couches instead of engaging in hire and fire approach when things are not going our way. Meanwhile, I wish our Super Eagles a resounding victory over Burkina Faso on sunday.