Adamu: Keshi, best option for Nigeria

Former FIFA and CAF Executive Committee member, Dr. Amos Adamu has offered a timely warning to avert the dwindling stature of the Super Eagles which has seen the team sinking to eighth position in Africa and 45th in the world. He also declared that Stephen Keshi, for now, “is the best option for Nigeria to coach the Super Eagles”.
“Failure to plan is planning to fail”, he remarked on Tuesday in Lagos as he pondered on the fortunes of the Super Eagles. “The qualifying series for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations are barely six weeks away, yet the national team has not taken any definite shape”, remarked Adamu.
He wondered why a coach has not taken his place as the failure to secure qualifications for 2012 and 2015 editions of the Africa Cup of nations had roots in internal wrangling. “We need a coach urgently for the Super Eagles to take shape”.
But Adamu believes that in the present circumstances, Keshi still remains the best option for Nigeria. “The NFF at the moment cannot afford a foreign coach as the budget is not in place while the NFF has been prosecuting Nigeria’s participation in competitions with borrowed money”.
He admitted that Keshi was culpable for Nigeria’s failure to get to Equatorial Guinea 2015, but added that one must not miss the fact that the NFF was literarily not in place.
“The disorganized situation in the NFF had its adverse effect also on the players”. Dr. Adamu is of the opinion that Nigeria cannot afford to miss out in two consecutive editions of the continental premier competition.
He therefore advised the NFF to negotiate with Keshi and create an enabling environment to kick start Nigeria’s Africa Nations campaign which begins early June with a home game against Tchad. This is immediately followed with an away duel with Tanzania before the potentially explosive home game with Egypt in the first quarter of next year.
A slip in the first two projected easier encounters is capable of putting Nigeria’s campaign on life support as it happened in the failed attempts for the 2012 and 2015 editions.
He praised the NFF president for the futuristic ideals being put up for the national teams but also advised that immediate concerns should not be overlooked. Adamu wants the Keshi’s case settled on time so that the coach will be able to go round to scout the players needed to turn the Eagles’ fortune around.
To Adamu, Nigeria’s path to greatness again is long and tourtious which could only be realised through coordinated approach. “First we take every competition serious”. He is unhappy at the early elimination of Nigerian clubsides from the CAF Champions’ League and how uncoordinated plans saw Dolphins being kicked out of the CAF Confederation Cup via walkover.
Meanwhile, Keshi will sign a contract as coach of the Super Eagles this week.
The three-time African champions have been without a substantive coach since June 2014 when Keshi’s first contract with the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) lapsed.
Keshi oversaw Nigeria’s 2015 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifying campaign without a contract and speculations had been rife over his future with the Nigeria national team.
The NFF has now put such speculations to bed by announcing that Keshi will put pen to paper on a new deal this week.
“By the grace of God, the contract of Stephen Keshi will be signed in a day or two. We have completed everything from our end and by the grace of God everything will be finalised this week,” Dr Mohammed Sanusi, General Secretary of the NFF, said on Tuesday.