Super Eagles AFCON 2013 winning coach Stephen Okechukwu Keshi hardly grants media interviews anymore in recent times. But Reporter REMI SULOLA caught up with the “BIG BOSS” and convinced him to open up on all the issues Nigerians want him to talk about.
Keshi answered all questions frankly and straight from the heart with guns blazing in this no holds barred exclusive interview. He spoke on the disappointment of non qualification to defend the title Nigeria won in South Africa, why the team went from an exemplary team to a struggling team, his sour relationship with his employers, the Nigerian Football Federation(NFF) as well as his feelings concerning the public pronouncements on him by his senior colleagues in the coaching business.
He also put things in perspective concerning the alleged moves to get another coaching job after the Eagles failed to qualify for the 2015 AFCON:
FAILURE TO QUALIFY FOR AFCON 2015
“Well, it’s a very painful thing when a coach loses a game or does not qualify for a tournament. It doesn’t feel good but you cannot win all the games. It’s not possible. Even some of the best coaches did not make the next round in the world Cup. Some of them did not make it. Some of them did not even win a match in the last World Cup. It’s not that they like it. They are not feeling good about it but it’s part of the game. You win some, you lose some.
“Personally, I wasn’t happy because I wanted Nigeria to be there again and it would have been an opportunity for Nigeria to win it back to back and make Nigerians proud again. But every disappointment is a blessing. I believe it is the will of God. I can’t do otherwise what God has ordained?”
NFF DERAILED EAGLES PROGRESS
“Its the same way I started with the Super Eagles, it’s the same way I have been working elsewhere, I don’t think I would change because the same thing that I have been doing that was working. But at a point, what I have been doing was stopped. The NFF stopped the programme we were running, working with the home based players, trying to put some competition between the home based and the foreign professionals and it was going well and it has been working everywhere I go.”
“But we don’t have patience, we just want everything to be done immediately. You cannot have it that way. Here, I am surprised that those days when we were playing, we don’t have people imposing players on coaches. One time that this happened was when they imposed Christian Chukwu and Emmanuel Okala on Otto Gloria. We lost the game 2-0 against Algeria. And Otto Gloria said he was not involved in the game. He was like you want Christian Chukwu to play? I am not in charge.
“That’s the only time I have seen that done. But these days, it’s just that my players have to play. There’s too much sentiments, so many things happening. It should be whoever is the coach should be allowed to coach, that’s why he is employed. It’s not for them to tell the coach who is to be invited or to play. Because they are not seeing what the coach is seeing. I will continue to do it the way I have been doing it. Just that I have gained more experience at this point. So, I will just keep going.”
PLANS FOR EAGLES FUTURE
“Well, if I am there we will get some friendly matches and go for it. Mostly with the local players, especially to give them the experience, confidence, the bonding for them to know what it is to play at this level and then when we have the FIFA free day, we’ll have one or two matches, we can then bring in some foreign professionals to join them and start working together. If we keep playing friendlies, it’s then you’ll have a good structure of what you want. Everything should be alright.”
MEDIA CRITICISMS BY SENIOR COACHING COLLEAGUES
“Yes, I am disappointed by the public media criticisms of me by my senior colleagues in a way because for example Kashimawo Laloko, I was one of his players. Coach Adegboye Onigbinde, I was his captain. Amodu Shuaibu for example,we worked together, he knows what I can do,we were like brothers.
“If those three should come out saying all they’ve said, it should have been their happiness that we had this boy as a player and he is now doing well as a coach, we have to support him. And if there’s something going wrong, we need to call him behind and talk to him and should be able to discuss that this is what is going on and things like that.
“These are people I respect a lot but it’s unfortunate that they have to make their own contributions through the newspapers, radio or TV. I have never insulted any of them and I’ll never do it. Even my ex- team-mates know me. I never insulted any of them. They should come out and say whatever they want to say, it doesn’t matter. It’s their own opinion.
“I don’t think I have seen any professionals going out in front of the TV or newspapers to start abusing or belittling their other colleagues that he doesn’t know what he is doing. You don’t do that because you don’t have the same ability of thinking, reasoning or vision. If you want to do something, you may be can talk then.”
ON PROPOSED CONTRACT RENEWAL
“The situation is that there’s no proposed contract for me. It’s only by word of mouth from Amaju. There has never been a proposed one that I’ll say I’ll go through. Anyansi also talked about it but it’s the same thing. They are just confusing Nigerians that I’ll sign today or that I’ll sign tomorrow. They are just promising whatever. There’s no such thing. I don’t know where they are getting that from.”
ON HIS INTEREST IN THE JOB
“I am a professional coach. Coaching a team is not just about you. Everyone has to be involved. The FA, the media, everybody that has a stake in it, you know will have to contribute to make the team a success. To make things work out well, if there’s no unity, nothing is going to happen. As a professional coach, yes, I am interested. But if it’s not going to come, it’s not the end of the world.”
ON TAKING A PAY CUT IN NEW CONTRACT
“Yes, it is very insulting.NFF never talked to me about that. Like I have been saying, if I am not coaching Nigeria it’s not going to be the end of the world. If that’s their thinking, we might have an agreement for any other person to take it.
“Coaching Nigeria is a great opportunity because after playing for 14 years, captaining the Nigeria team and as a player for 14 years, as one of the pioneers of the Flying Eagles, assistant coaches to Bonfrere Jo, Shuaibu Amodu, then came in as the head coach and winning the AFCON after almost 20 years, then thinking of a pay cut I feel it’s something I will have to think about.”
SNUBBING MAIGARI AND PINNICK IN MALABO
“That’s a very good question. I never saw Aminu Maigari in Malabo. I never saw Amaju Pinnick in Malabo. I don’t know where they got that information from. I guess it’s just to make Keshi look bad to Nigerians. But Maigari will never say he saw me. I have not seen Maigari since we came back from the World Cup. I am sure somebody is sponsoring them to write all these things to make Keshi look bad in the sight of Nigerians. But no wahala. God is watching.”
EQUATORIAL GUINEA JOB
” Well the thing with Equatorial Guinea is that it’s been long they’ve been after me to coach their team. I was to go to Equatorial Guinea to sign a five-years contract before Maigari called me to come back to take up the job of the National team. I was already in Malabo to sign.
“But I made a U-turn to Nigeria to sign and when I came to Nigeria I signed in the month of November. In December, Equatorial Guinea had a problem with their coach and they came back to me again. We were in training camp at the Bolton White Apartments and Hotel, to ask if I can help them and I said I cannot do that.
“I told them that I have to talk to my boss about such. When the Equatorial Guinea Ambassador to Nigeria asked who he could talk to, I said okay, speak to Maigari, if he agrees I’ll go for the one month but if he doesn’t, I cannot. He went to speak with Green and Maigari, they said they cannot allow me to go.
“But immediately Amaju came in and made the statement that my crew and I have been sacked from the National team after the Sudan game in Abuja, the next day Equatorial Guinea came to me again that their FA wants me for the ongoing AFCON tournament. And I said okay. That we’ll talk.
“Meanwhile, I don’t understand why they used the word sacked when I don’t have a contract in the first place.
“But in December, they invited me to Equatorial Guinea, we spoke and I told them it was too short for me to take up the job. Because AFCON was to start on January 17th and they want me to start in December. I cannot do that because the time is too short for me to do anything with the team. I told them that they should wait till after AFCON. That we can restart the whole programme and talk then. So, the relationship between Equatorial Guinea and I has been there for about four years or more. That is why I didn’t go to Equatorial Guinea. Not because of non agreement on contract money or conditions.”
