Keshi should now get down to work, says Onigbinde

FORMER coach of the Super Eagles, Chief Adegboye Onigbinde, has described as good news the Nigeria Football Federation’s (NFF) re-appointment of Stephen Keshi as super Eagles’ substantive coach, saying the development would now give the team the chance to plan for the on-coming qualifiers.

Onigbinde told The Guardian that now that Keshi’s contract has been taken care of, the coach should adjust to the current terrain of the nation’s football management.

“I think it’s a good thing we have a substantive coach at last. That is the joy of the whole thing. The details are something different, which I am not aware of. It is something between him and his employers. We welcome Keshi back. But one thing I will advise him is to make sure that he does everything possible to get fully prepared for any competition. I am not a technical adviser or a consultant to the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) or to Keshi; I believe his procedure will depend entirely on the terms of agreement between him and his employers,” Onigbinde said.

The Ibadan High chief also supports Keshi on his new assistant, Mohammed Salisu Yusuf, saying the coach has the right to pick whoever he thinks he can work with.

“When you have a team, whether at club or national level, the chief coach is the manager. If I ask you today who is the manager of Arsenal, you will say Arsene Wenger. Who is the chief coach, Wenger? It’s only in Nigeria we try to separate these functions.