Stephen Keshi

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Stephen Keshi
Personal information
Full nameStephen Okechukwu Keshi
Date of birth (1962-01-23) 23 January 1962[1]
Place of birthAzare, Bauchi State, Nigeria
Height1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Playing positionDefender
Club information
Current clubNigeria (manager)
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
1979ACB Lagos10(1)
1980–1984New Nigeria Bank42(4)
1985Stade d'Abidjan13(2)
1986Africa Sports22(2)
1986–1987Lokeren28(6)
1987–1991Anderlecht99(18)
1991–1993RC Strasbourg62(9)
1993–1994Molenbeek40(1)
1995CCV Hydra20(1)
1996Sacramento Scorpions16(3)
1997–1998Perlis FA34(4)
Total386(51)
National team
1981–1995Nigeria64(9)
Teams managed
2004–2006Togo
2007–2008Togo
2008–2010Mali
2011Togo
2011–Nigeria
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.
† Appearances (Goals).

Stephen Okechukwu Keshi (born 23 January 1962) is a Nigerian football manager and former football defender who has managed the Nigeria national team since 2011. He is one of only two people, along with Egypt's Mahmoud El-Gohary, to have won the Africa Cup of Nations as both a player and a coach.

Coaching career

After a playing career mostly with Belgian clubs, Keshi went to the United States to be educated in coaching.

In 1996 he was joined by Augustine Eguavoen, who once coached the Nigerian national team. They played together in California as the backbone of the defence for the short-lived Sacramento Scorpions. Keshi has been a part of the coaching staff for the Nigerian national team, most notably as head coach for the Junior Eagles at the 2001 African Youth Championship which also served as qualification for the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship, without success.

Between 2004 and 2006 Keshi coached the Togo national football team, unexpectedly bringing them to their first World Cup tournament, Germany 2006. Having secured Togo's unlikely qualification, he was promptly replaced by German coach Otto Pfister prior to the World Cup finals, after Togo showed a dismal performance and failed to advance to the knock-out stage in 2006 African Cup of Nations in Egypt.

However, Pfister did not last beyond a controversial World Cup campaign that nearly resulted in a player's strike over pay and Togo remained without a manager until February 2007 when they re-engaged Keshi in time for a friendly against Cameroon.

He worked as manager of the Mali national football team, after being appointed in April 2008 on a two-year deal.[2] Keshi was sacked in January 2010, after Mali's early exit in the group stages of the Africa Cup of Nations.[3]

Keshi became coach of the Nigerian National Team in 2011.[4][5] He led Nigeria to qualification for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, which they went on to win, defeating Burkina Faso 1–0 in the final.[6] The following day Keshi handed in his resignation,[7] only to reverse his decision the day after.[8] Keshi led Nigeria to the 2013 Confederations Cup, defeated Tahiti 6–1, and lost 1–2 to Uruguay in the second game, and also lost 0–3 to World Cup winners, Spain in their final group game.

On 16 November 2013, Keshi's Nigeria secured qualification to the 2014 World Cup by beating Ethiopia 4–1 on aggregate in a play-off.[9]

Honours

Player

Club

New Nigeria Bank FC

  • West African Club Championship (2): 1983, 1984

Stade d'Abidjan

  • Coupe Houphoet Boigny (2): 1985, 1986

Africa Sports

  • Côte d'Ivoire Premier Division (1): 1986
  • Côte d'Ivoire Coupe (1): 1986

Anderlecht

International

Nigeria

Manager

International

Nigeria

References

  1. ↑ http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/statisticsandrecords/players/player=52063/index.html
  2. ↑ "Keshi opts for Mali national team". BBC. 2 April 2008. Retrieved 6 April 2008. 
  3. ↑ "Stephen Keshi sacked as Mali boss". BBC. 28 January 2010. Retrieved 2 November 2011. 
  4. ↑ "NFF to Announce Keshi as Eagles Coach". allafrica.com. 2 November 2011. Retrieved 2 November 2011. 
  5. ↑ "Stephen Keshi confident of Super Eagles revival". BBC Sport. 3 November 2011. Retrieved 12 February 2013. 
  6. ↑ "Nigeria v Burkina Faso – as it happened". Guardian UK. 10 February 2013. Retrieved 12 February 2013. 
  7. ↑ "Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi hands in resignation one day after winning African title". Goal.com. 9 February 2013. Retrieved 12 February 2013. 
  8. ↑ "Nigeria's Stephen Keshi reverses resignation and opts to stay on". Guardian UK. 12 February 2013. Retrieved 12 February 2013. 
  9. ↑ "World Cup 2014: Nigeria beat Ethiopia to book berth in Brazil". BBC. 16 November 2013. Retrieved 21 December 2013. 
  10. ↑ http://www.cafonline.com/football/news/19007-keshi-is-coach-of-the-year.html

External links

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