Former captain Stephen Keshi was announced as the coach of the Super Eagles on Wednesday by the Nigeria Football Federation- NFF, following Samson Siasia’s sack for failing to qualify the Super Eagles for the Nations Cup next year for the first time in 25 years. Keshi has been mandated by the NFF to restore the glory days of Nigerian football and bring smiles back to the faces of football fans in the country. His first task is to qualify the Eagles for the Nations Cup in 2013 in South Africa and eventually the Brazil 2014 World Cup. Former coach Samson Siasia’s era was known for rifts with star players. He claimed that a number of his players attempted to take control of the squad. During his time with Togo in his first stint, Keshi also had a rift with Togo star player Emmanuel Adebayor which eventually led to his sack from Togo despite qualifying Togo for the World Cup for the first time in their history. Can Keshi succeed where Siasia has failed? Here? are five things Keshi must do to succeed with the Super Eagles.
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Instill Discipline
Indiscipline has been the bane of the national team for some years now. There were stories of players reporting to camp late and still getting on the starting team list. To be fair to Siasia, he brought some level of discipline to the national team, some said he went too far with his discipline that’s why he lost control of the dressing room. Keshi needs to know how to manage the big egos in the team. In his playing days, Keshi was known as the Big Boss, so he should know how to manage the egos in the team. West Brom of England strike,r Osaze Odemwingie is known for his outspokenness, he has fallen out with past Nigerian coaches and it will not be surprising if his jibes come to the fore again. He may be one of Nigeria’s most consistent players? but a player can never be bigger than the coach or the team. Keshi must take charge? and stamp his authority from the outset and instill discipline in the team.
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Select fit And Willing Players
The Super Eagles performance in the crucial game against Guinea was below average. Some players like Osaze were not fully fit and went ahead to put up his worst performance in the Nigerian shirt. Keshi must select only fit and willing players, players that are willing to represent their country and not those who feign injury anytime they are called up to represent their fatherland. Regular starters in their teams and those that played at least 70 per cent? of the games for their clubs must be considered first. The era of calling a player because he plays for? a big club should be done away with. Mikel Obi, one of the star players in the team has failed to live up to the hype. In crucial moments Mikel has failed to progress into an energetic or reliable force and should be dropped if he doesn’t change his attitude towards national team assignments.? A player should be enthusiastic about playing for his country of birth. The attitude of some players in the game against Guinea was pathetic. Serious competitions should not be used to market players at the expense of the country. Fitness and willingness should be the major criteria for selections.
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Tactical Awareness
One of Siasia’s shortcomings was his tactical deficiencies. He lacked the basic tactics to unsettle his opponents. The Super Eagles play under him was too pedestrian, and football has gone beyond 11 men playing on the pitch. Games are lost and won from the bench.Keshi needs to step up his game if he is to succeed as coach of the Super Eagles.Coaches like Alex Ferguson,Jose Mourinho,Fabio Capello,Othmar Hitzfield and Pep Guardiola are known for winning games with their tactical formation and? their ability to read games and make the right substitution.Siasia’s preferred 4-2-4 formation in modern football is too risky,it leaves the midfield exposed and the defenders suffer.With the coming back of Etuhu into the Eagles fold,Keshi should go for a 4-3-3 formations with two holding midfielders to add steel to Nigeria’s midfield which was lacking during Siasia’s reign.The defence which has been the Eagles Achilles’ heel should be sorted out.
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Groom Talents
The over dependence of foreign based players should stop. Players from the local league should be encouraged.Ahmed Musa was one of the shining lights in the local league before he headed to Europe but all his performance when he was at Kano Pillars was overlooked by the coaches then.Only players that are within the age groups should be taken to age group competitions, so that Keshi can have a pool of players to choose from. Players like Osaze,Etuhu and Yobo are approaching the? ends of their careers .Keshi should source for local talents in the league and Europe to replace the aging stars in the team . Players from the Under 17 and 20 should be groomed .But the problem is most of the players that play in the under 17 and 20 competitions are already approaching 30 and their careers would have finished before they even get a call up to the Super Eagles. Performing players like the MVP of the local league, the top scorer should always get a call up to the national team to boost the morale of the players and image of the local league.
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Restore Trust Of Fans
Most football fans have lost interest in the Super Eagles, their lacklustre performance of the team in recent times is one of the major reasons, The never say die attitude which was evident in the Super Eagles play in the 90’s? needs to be restored to give fans some confidence.This Keshi?? can do by bringing the resilience in the Eagles play. What better way than to start with heart thumping victories over Zambia and Botswana.