A change at the summit of Nigerian politics means that the Big Boss has no reason to remain at the helm of the national team.

I have always been a fan of Stephen Okechukwu Keshi.

Right from his days at St Finbarr’s College, Akoka, Lagos, and when his brother Emmanuel and I were classmates at Edo College, Benin City, I always had a soft spot for him.

Then, his school team that included the likes of Henry Nwosu and co. had just returned from a victorious outing at the world secondary school football championship. They came calling at Ogbe Stadium and my school team (that was being prepared to follow in their footsteps in the next edition of the competition) had a pulsating 3-3 draw with them.

I knew Nigeria had a crop of young men that would shake the world.

That was in 1978.

He and Nwosu were to later come to Benin. While Keshi was fully with the New Nigeria Bank football club, Nwosu, though an employee of the same club, also doubled as a student at Eghosa Grammar School, where he was to re-write his WAEC exams.

Ever since, beyond his peers, Keshi has remained a recurrent decimal in the Nigerian football firmament. The climax was winning the Nations Cup as coach of the Super Eagles in 2013 in faraway South Africa. While the rest of the country celebrated, some people sulked…and bided their time.

Then a trip to Brazil for the Confederations Cup and the World Cup as coach of the Nigerian National team all placed Keshi in a class of his own amongst Nigerian, nay, African coaches.

However, since the end of the World Cup, things have fallen apart for Keshi.

Before now, I wrote a piece for Goal Nigeria in which I wondered aloud why he didn’t do himself a favour by walking away when the ovation was loudest.

I could understand the patriotic fervour that might have informed his decision to return and handle the national team on an ad-hoc basis for the 2015 Nations Cup qualifiers pending the appointment of a substantive coach, but I did say then that with the election (or selection) of Amaju Pinnick as NFF President, Keshi ought to have known that his days as the man to run things at the Super Eagles were numbered.

Then after two loses and a win, he was sacked by a board that hadn’t even given him an appointment in the first place, before that board was over-ruled by President Goodluck Jonathan.

Since the end of the qualifiers and the subsequent Nations Cup, Keshi has continued to hang around Abuja like a stranded man making himself look so cheap and hapless before a board that obviously doesn’t want him, but for their own personal survival couldn’t tell him so because of the President that once over-ruled them.

I am appalled, to put it mildly, that Keshi could so cheapen himself before people who still parade many men who have never forgiven him for winning the Afcon against all their calculations and returning home to a hero’s welcome. I am more appalled that he has managers and legal advisers that appear bereft of ideas on how they can move the career of their client forward.

My friend and brother Keshi, in case none of those green-eyed men whom you’ve given the impression that you are at their mercy have not had the nerves to look you in the face to tell you, I know enough that, apart from your regular traducers, many of your well-wishers like Pa Festus Onigbinde, Christian Chukwu, Henry Nwosu, Joe Erico etc. have told you and I will join them now to tell you as a friend and a brother: Please Stephen, God has been very gracious to you, just call and book an appointment with Felix Anyasi and together with him see Amaju Pinnick and at a very convivial and conducive atmosphere, thank them for giving you the opportunity to serve but also tell them that at this point in time, you would want to move on.

Please move on now with whatever little respect you still have left because the longer you hang around there, the more some people will feel thrilled to no end in seeing you comprehensively diminished.

I don’t know what you’ve been waiting for, but I can assure you that with Jonathan now on his way back to Otuoke, your traducers have you on your back.

In fact, one of them, an old boy of your alma mater, perhaps speaking the mind of some of his colleagues on the board, threatened to resign the day your appointment is ratified by the board!

So what else do you need to see or be told before you know you have overstayed your welcome by this NFF?

But Stephen, if you would undertake a few updating programs here and there, and do one or two things differently with any opportunity you have again, you still have many more cups ahead of you to lift as coach!

Mark my words.

And goodbye my friend.



Source: Goal.com

http://believeafrica.net/opinion-with-jonathan-out-of-office-what-is-keshi-waiting-for-p455-91.htm

change doesn't mean change in everything. Sun no go rise in west because buhari win now. if after necessary consultations he end up the best for naija may be d poor performance was due to some probs in contract or crew then that will be address.
Atlist somethings will still remain till after some months to see if we need change.
waiting to be given special adviser to GMB on nairaland matters.