Keshi Describes New Deal As New Beginning

Stephen Keshi has said
that his new two-year contract to coach Nigeria should mark a fresh start for the country’s football team after several months of delays and speculations surrounding his future.
Keshi, 53, signed a new deal this week that will terminate at the end of the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations in Gabon.
“First of all I want to thank God for this day,” Keshi said at Tuesday’s formal signing ceremony in Abuja.
“This is because I am one among 170 million Nigerians who is previleged to do this job.
“I also want to thank Nigerians because a lot of them still have confidence in me.
“But Keshi alone cannot do this job. It’s big, it’s huge. I know the NFF will give me 150% support and I know that Nigerians will give us the support.
“This is the time for us to come together to fight for this nation. I am begging you all to please put the past behind and let’s start afresh.”
NFF technical committee chairman, Felix Anyansi-Agwu, also described Keshi’s second stint as Eagles coach as “a new beginning”, while soliciting for support for the coach to succeed.
Anyansi Agwu said: “The entire board has absolute confidence on the capacity of Stephen Keshi to take the Super Eagles to new heights.
“We plead with Nigerians to see this as a new beginning and support Keshi.”
Keshi’s first contract expired after last year’s World Cup in Brazil, where Nigeria reached the knockout stage for only the third time in their history.
In his first stint in charge of the Super Eagles, he led the country to a third Nations Cup trophy and qualified them for the 2014 World Cup.
However, his relationship with his employers was frosty and on this account he quit his post hours after he led the Eagles to win the 2013 Nations Cup in Johannesburg, South Africa.
He would later rescind this decision, but he was later fingered for instigating pay rows involving the team prior to the FIFA Confederations Cup and later at the World Cup, both in Brazil.
A new NFF administration axed him soon after they assumed office late last year, but Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan ordered he be reinstated.
However, he failed to qualify Nigeria to the 2015 Nations Cup in Equatorial Guinea after the Eagles forced South Africa to a 2-2 draw at home when they needed to win to advance.