Leave Keshi alone – Okocha tells ex-internationals

Posted by admin Headlines, Soccer, Sports Tuesday, January 17th, 2012

Former Super Eagles’ captain, Austin Jay Jay Okocha, is drumming up support for national team’s Coach, Stephen Keshi ahead of Nigeria’s the first round of 2013 Africa Nations Cup qualifier against Rwanda.

Nigeria will face Rwanda over two legs in the first round of the qualifiers with the first leg billed for February 29 in Kigali.

Keshi has started early in his preparations, inviting a slew of domestically based players to camp in Abuja, and Okocha believes it’s a move in the right direction.
“There are good players in the (domestic) league and I think Keshi should be praised for looking towards the home-based players,” Okocha said.

Local coaches in Nigeria have been criticised in the past for allowing themselves to be influenced, but Okocha says former internationals should allow the coach to do his job without any interference.
“A coach is paid to take decisions. All of us (ex internationals) are not coaches; we might have played the game at a very high level, but we are not coaches.
“At the end of the day, it is just the coach’s team and with all due respect, we have to allow him to do his job,” he stressed.

The former Paris Saint Germain and Fenerbahce midfielder, however, hinted that he would be disposed toward handing pieces of advice to Keshi privately when he sees it necessary.
“Keshi is my friend and as a friend, I could decide to call him up and speak to him about certain issues, but it is left to him to decide whether or not he wants to take my advice,” he said.
Super Eagles will face Rwanda in the second leg of the 2013 Africa Nations Cup qualifier on the weekend of June 15–17.

-Sunwp_posts