NIGERIA: Mystery surrounds Keshi's resignation as NFF says no

Jul 1, 2014 7:50:00 PM
The 52-year-old was reported to have
left his post on Monday but the
situation remains unclear 24 hours
later
The future of Super Eagles coach Stephen
Keshi remained a mystery on Tuesday after
the Nigerian Football Federation denied
reports he resigned following their World Cup
exit.
Nigeria went out of the tournament in Brazil
at the round of 16 stage after a 2-0 defeat to
France, after which Keshi said: “It's time for
me to go back to my family and face fresh
challenges."
That was widely interpreted as a sign he had
quit and it appeared to be confirmed when
the Super Eagles’ official twitter account
retweeted a story stating Keshi had indeed
stood down.
However, when contacted by Goal on
Tuesday, NFF spokesman Ademola Olajire:
“Coach Keshi has not submitted an official
resignation letter.
“He was not employed in the mixed zone
[after the France game] or on Facebook.”
The former Nigeria captain has already
achieved much success, becoming the
second man to win the African Cup of
Nations as a player and as a coach in 2013.
After the team’s AFCON triumph, Keshi
tendered his resignation saying he had been
disrespected by the NFF. He opted to carry
on following the intervention of the country's
sports minister.
Afterwards, he was owed seven months'
salary, another issue that was resolved by
the government.
He saw the Super Eagles through qualifying
to the World Cup and became the first
Nigerian to take them to the round of 16, their
first appearance at that stage since 1998.
During the team's stay in Brazil he has
claimed his services are wanted by at least
six countries, among them South Africa who
recently decided not to extend the contract of
coach Gordon Igesund.