Ilo blasts Keshi

A revered sports administrator and former board member of the Nigeria Football Association, Rev Moses Ilo has condemned the attitude of Super Eagles coach, Stephen Keshi towards his employers, particularly as it affects the national team job.

Ilo who spoke on a television sports programme at the weekend in Lagos said Keshi’s habit of sending multiple applications to numerous countries asking to handle their national teams while negotiating with the

NFF for the Super Eagles job was a clear show of disrespect for the NFF.

Super Eagles coach, Stephen Keshi and Rev Moses Ilo

Asked of what he thought of Keshi’s return to the Super Eagles and his chances of success, Ilo said, “I think Keshi should not be there. I have nothing against Keshi as a person; his performance in the past was good but the way he went about his return to the team made nonsense of the Nigeria Football Federation.”

Continuing, Ilo said, “He treated them (the NFF) like garbage and that’s what is happening now. They have lost his respect and I don’t know how this would affect their relationship.”

The former President of the Nigeria Cycling Federation said, “Keshi’s show of disrespect for the NFF was evident in the coach’s conduct because it was not a secret that while he was negotiating with the NFF for his re-engagement, he was also negotiating with many other countries; busy attending interviews here and there.”

Should Ilo be on the board of the NFF, Keshi would not have got the Super Eagles job. “Keshi should go elsewhere and make his money, nobody will stop him. But for Nigeria, I think we better think again. Even Keshi himself, I don’t think he would come back if he had a choice.”

Meanwhile, the Nigeria Football Federation has confirmed it will investigate reports that Stephen Keshi applied to manage Ivory Coast.

The Ivorian FA had on Friday, announced it had received 59 applications in the race to succeed Herve Renard. Keshi’s name was among the 59 applicants and the NFF is fuming over this development.

Although the page on FIF website listing Keshi and 58 other applicants for the Elephants job has been taken down, the NFF insists that will not prevent ‘a full investigation’.

“The NFF will open a full investigation to determine whether Mr Stephen Keshi actually applied for the vacant Ivory Coast job,” said NFF spokesman Ademola Olajire.

A source close to the Super Eagles coach told Sports Vanguard that Keshi’s application for the Ivory Coast job pre-dates his re-engagement by Nigeria. It is however difficult to believe the source as former Ivory Coast coach, Herve Renard resigned his appointment with the Ivorian FF Friday, May 22, almost a month after Keshi returned as Nigeria coach for the third time.