Former Nigeria captain, Adokiye Amasiemaka, has blasted the Nigeria Football Federation for wanting to hire a foreign coach to replace the embattled out-of-contract Stephen Keshi.
Amasiemaka, a member of Nigeria’s victorious 1980 Green Eagles team that won the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time in their history believes Keshi has not been shown enough respect.
Speaking with SL10.ng, the ex-international questioned the credibility of the NFF leadership and called for foreign administrators to run the affairs of the NFF if they are so interested in hiring foreign coaches for the national team.
“What makes these chaps who call themselves football administrators more credible to run our football than our indigenous coaches are to manage our football teams?” he queried.
“Why do they keep on talking about foreign coaches? Why don’t they ever talk of foreign administrators?” he asked rhetorically.
“Gentlemen, don’t you think it is high time we had foreign administrators to occupy the glass house that is now the burnt house?
“Stephen Keshi has done marvelously. We should actually give Stephen Keshi, Daniel Amokachi and Sylvanus Okpala and the rest of the crew much more credit than is given to them.”
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COMMENTS
God bless you sir.
God bless you for you are truelly a great sportman who knows the truth.Unlike those who are jealous of Keshi’s achievement.Most ex footballers who surpose to surport Keshi are condeming him without give one single solution top Nigeria football.I alway said it that if they feel they know the game,let them take up coaching jobs for us to see.it is easy to sit down before a telicvision and criticise or comment,but let us see you in pratical action.after all Keshi started in Togo.do the same and let us see.
my dear God will bless you,the point is that we don’t appriciate what we have last year in africa keshi was giving the best coach in africa,what we need is to take away sentiment and do the right thing which is to give nigerian coaches respect their diserve,you will an ex intanational because he don’t like keshi’s face will bring him self down by talking like someone that have not being expose,if a coach is not doing well what you will do as a professional is to call him or rather go to him if you belive in nigeria football and advice the coach not to open you mouth on the pages of news paper to talk against the coach knowing too well that you can not get close to the person achivement,the likes of Garba lawal and victor ikpeba at every giving time they talk down on the coach,but am not suprise may be during their playing time they may see him then as treat,but his shoes are too big for both of you
@patrick onyemelukwe and bollar
You are attempting to trivialize and diminish the football knowledge and accomplishments of Ikpeba and Lawal. Ikpeaba’s football career and exposure to top level football is superior to that of Keshi while they were in Europe. So while Keshi should be respected as coach, Ikpeaba’s knowledge of the game entitles him to analyze and criticize Keshi or any other Nigerian coach. Ikpeba is a football analyst same as Gary Linekar in England who regularly critizises the tactics and decisions of english coaches this is part of the game. Keshi made many many questionable decisions over the last 12 months that conntributed massively to the team’s failure
Keshi is reponsible for the AFCON failure, and I am loosing respect for Keshi with each passing day. Keshi should come out and apologize to Nigerians for his failure accept responsibility as a leader and coach . It is only after accepting responsibility then can start to give various reasons and factors that may have contributed to the failure of the team. That is what leadership is. Not this pointless campaign of trying to remain coach. At the end of the day anyway you look at it Keshi is responsible.
@bollar,@ patrick onyemelukwe, you guys are good. I thought i was the only one thinking this way. God bless you guys for seeing it differently from most people in this forum who is calling for Keshi’s head.
@Benue, “Ikpeaba’s football career and exposure to top level football is superior to that of Keshi while they were in Europe” how could you say that? when Keshi played in the final of European cup winers 1990 for Anderlecht Fc against Sampdoria, Ikpeba was still a small boy. Keshi played highest football in Europe and well respected.
@Marsh
Your comments are surprising. Nobody is calling for Keshi’s head. The issue is that Keshi does not want to accept responsibility for the failuere of the team to qualify for AFcon 2015.
Keshi should come out and apologize to Nigerians for his failure and accept responsibility as a leader and coach . It is only after accepting responsibility then can start to give various reasons and factors that may have contributed to the failure of the team. That is what leadership is. Not this pointless campaign of trying to remain coach. At the end of the day anyway you look at it Keshi is ultimately responsible for the team’s failure.
We are not saying that keshi is good or bad and we’re not also saying that Nigeria should be winning all our matches. The question is what pattern of play did our national team adopt. We want good football. Look at the u-17 team that won the cup last year. Apart from winning the cup, look at the pattern, the formation & style of play. Remember that cameroun beat them at african qualifying stage, but see how they bounced back. Keshi is a fortunate guy at last year nation cup, not his tactics. Again, keshi does not have regards for his employer (NFF), no matter how dirty politics the football house is known for, it does not mean that keshi should throw caution into wind and disrespect them. Keshi disrespect start from after AFCON success. Thus he should go, afterall, Siasia failed to qualify for AFCON, and he was fired, then Keshi was among those that attack Siasia, on how Siasia is not aware of the permutation and calculation, for Nigeria to qualify, now the same thing applicable to keshi knowing fully well that outright victory is what he need, yet he could not get it. Finally, Nigerian want good footbal from our national team not an hypertensive kind of play we received from them. Thank you
Adokie, you are just an empty barrel……
@Marsh you have very short and selective memory.
Ikpeba played regularly and excelled winning multiple trophies, awards and regularly reaching the advanced stages of the Champions league and Europa Cup(UEFA Cup) while playing for Monaco under legendary football coaches like Wenger and Tigana. Ikpeba played regular first team football in a Monaco team that included the likes of Klinsman, Djorkaeff, Enzo Scifo, Emmanuel Petit, Thuram, Sonny Anderson, a young Thiery Henry and David Trezeguet. Ikpeba is the 3rd or 4th highest goals scorer in the History of Monaco FC, ahead of Legendary attacking players Like George Weah, Klinsman(2 years at Monaco), Djorkaeff, Shabani Nonda, Sonny Anderson, Adebayo, Henry, and Trezeguet. Apart from Klinsman all these players spend 4 to 6 years at Monaco. In addition to playing for Monaco in France(over 170 games), Ikpeba also Played about 100 games in Belgium(he won the Best Black Player Award in Belgium), and about 40 games for Dortmond in Germany.
Ikpeba is one of only 4 Nigerians to win the African footballer of the year. He is one of only 2 Nigerians to score over 100 european goals in the 90’s. Ikpeba was the 2nd highest goalscorer in the 1997 UEFA Cup(now Europa League)
Yes Keshi and the eagles coaches should be given respect, however Lawal and particularly Ikpeba are entiltled and highly knowledgeable to criticize any Nigerian coach. It is shocking that you guys think otherwise. Some of the white football pundits and analyst you listen to on TV did not accomplish what Ikpeba did in Europe. Yet these white football analysts critsize coaches who are more experienced than Keshi all the time and you guys dont blink and eye.
All those guys supporting keshi and blaming NFF are alll Big FOOLS. You are a disgrace to the Nation. Why supporting a useless coach that left all our best legs and sentimentally picked mediocres, except UCHE, SONE ALUKO, to represent us, Why cant u call a spade, a spade.
@Benue, yes Ikpeba played with Scifo, Youri, Anderson etc., so does that make him to have better football knowledge than Keshi? Keshi played to the highest level and has good knowledge of the game. Ikpeba was never a regular in super eagles throughout his career but Keshi was until his retirement period he (Keshi) agreed to be on the bench. My problem with Ikpeba is that he has loud mouth. Keshi was a defender even at that he scores goals, he did that in Nations cup several time . I am sure Ikpeba never score a goal in Nations Cup. Ikpeba will never have better knowledge of the game than Keshi, yes Ikpeba was a good player so was Keshi.
@Marsh
I think you are missing the point I am making. I did not say Ikpeba has more football knowledge than Keshi. I said Ikpeba’s football career in Europe was more illustrious and successfull than that of keshi. Addtionally Ikpeba had the unique priviledge of working and learning football from the greatest football minds in the history of the game( Wenger and Tigana). As far as I am aware Jean Amadu Tigana is the only black man to have coached a English Premiership team for more than three years.
In other words what Ikpeaba learned in Europe entitles Ikpeba to authoritatively analyze and crtizise the perforamnce of any Nigerian coach. The same way that Garylinekar, Jamie Rednapp, and Gary Neville do in Europe. Keshi and other Nigerian coaches are not above Critisizm.
@Benue, i am not missing the point, anyone can criticize but when you do that without identifying a problem and better options then you are a noise maker. Ikpeba criticized Keshi for inviting Aaron from Chinese league but the same player scored 2 goals in 2 matches before the last game. Now, did he get that one right or wrong? these are my problem with him. Ikpeba only feels that playing in European big teams makes one a big player. No! he’s wrong. Owobokiri was a good striker making waves in Europe then but Yekini who plays for division 2 club Victoria Setubal was chosen ahead of him as eagles best striker. Ikpeba only made name in during the time of Tigana but at the end what happened? he was benched and he started complaining that he can’t be on the bench and he went to Dortmund and the same happened with Mathias Sammer. He has a loud mouth. Sometimes playing a bigger club does not make you a loud mouth. So Mikel should just start talking anyhow because he plays for Chelsea. Have you heard Mike Emenalo criticizing Keshi? If he sees something wrong he will call him and discuss it. Do you only criticize? No, you should proffer solution but he Ikpeba never proffer any solution before but rather Keshi must be fired, the team is not good but when they win he will be silent and you will never hear him speak to even congratulate the coach. Bad bele o!
@Marsh
I dont want to turn this into an Ikpeba vs Keshi argument or debate, because both men are legends in their own right.
There is nothing wrong with your supporting Keshi or any other coach. But dont let your support for one person lead you to start trivializing or diminishing the achievement of another individual. Ikpeba was interviewed by the media about how Keshi was running the team and Keshi’s performances. Ikpeba simply gave his professional opinion of how Keshi running the team. What Ikpeba said is similar to what many football supporters have been saying for a very long time. Ikpeba should be commended for pointing out the negatives in the team. It is left for Keshi and the coaching crew to do what is right and beneficial to the team. In the interview i listened to Ikpeba gave some solutions/ alternative actions to be taken.
The fact that Aaron Samuel score 2 goals vs Congo and sudan does not necesarily mean that other more suitable and talented players were ignored by Keshi