CHAN qualifier: Keshi goes for history

BARELY five months after winning the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in South Africa, coach Stephen Keshi is on the verge of adding a chapter to the history of Nigerian football today, as he leads a home-based Super Eagles once more to confront the Elephants of Cote d’Ivoire in a return leg CHAN qualifier in Abidjan.
The Eagles had a comprehensive 4-1 win in Kaduna in the first leg tie leaving the Ivorians desperately in search of three unreplied goals to turn the tables against the reigning African champions.
Nigeria has never featured in the African Nations Championship (CHAN) since it was introduced in 2009 by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) for locally-based players. Thus, Keshi, would go down as the first coach to take Nigeria to the competition.
The former coach of Togo needs to convince the whole world that the victory against an undisciplined Ivorian side which finished the game in Kaduna with nine men was not a fluke after all.
Keshi, perhaps may not lose any sleep ahead of the cracker as he will be parading a bunch of tested players in Abidjan such as Azubuike Egwuekwe, Godfrey Oboabona, Sunday Mba, Kwambe Solomon, Ifeanyi Edeh and goalkeeper Chigozie Agbim, who had tasted top flight actions at 2013 AFCON as well as the just-ended FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil.
The absence of Gambo Mohammed who scored Nigeria’s first goal in the first leg due to an injury should not pose a problem as the team has the likes of two-goal hero, Sunday Mba, Ifeanyi Edeh, Gomo Onduku, Ezekiel Mbah, Abdullahi Gero, Osadinye Joseph and Etebo Oghene to deliver the first CHAN ticket.
Keshi, speaking ahead of the game expressed confidence that the ticket to CHAN 2014 is as good as won, saying that the players are in high spirits to make history as well.
“I think the players are ready, they want to do something to make themselves proud and Nigerians proud as well, so, they are ready.
“If we are entertaining fear we might as well just stay back instead of going to play, we just have to believe in ourselves and in what we have got as a team and go out and do our job,” remarked the former coach of Mali.