Officials of the Nigeria Football Federation are at loggerheads on whether out of contract Super Eagles coach, Stephen Keshi deserves a new contract, with a majority still seriously opposed to this.

It has exclusively been gathered that a section of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) leadership want Keshi to be given a new contract despite failing to qualify Nigeria to the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations so as to, at least, keep their plum jobs.

A top source informed that the group that favours a new contract for the failed coach believes Keshi’s “very powerful friends” will finally accept them if they give him a new deal.

However, this group is opposed by a majority on the NFF executive committee who has stuck to a “unanimous decision” in October to sack Keshi.

It will be recalled that the NFF fired the coach only to later be forced to rescind this decision on the orders of President Goodluck Jonathan.

There is certainly no love lost between Keshi and his employers even before this sensational U-turn and the frosty relationship has been worsened by the Sports Minister’s decision to directly pay the coach 14 million Naira as salaries for his work in October and November.

Most recently several top coaches including Shuaibu Amodu, Christian Chukwu and Adegboye Onigbinde have asked Keshi to walk away from the job because he has failed.