President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF)
Amaju Pinnick has said that Coach Stephen
Keshi was sacked to safeguard him from the wrath
of enraged Nigerian fans, who were on the
brink of lynching him during Wednesday’s 2015
Africa Cup of Nations qualifier with Sudan.
Pinnick and other NFF Executive Committee members
watched with awe, as fans pelted Keshi
with water bottles and stones as they demanded for
the head of the 2013 AFCON winner at the
Abuja National Stadium, venue of the match, which
Nigeria won 3-1 to keep alive their hopes of
qualifying for next year’s tournament in Morocco.
Chants of “Keshi must go:, “sack Keshi” and “we
don’t want Keshi
again” rented the air as fans went overdrive in their
bid to get their
voices heard by the NFF, who swiftly swung into
action in the wee
hours of yesterday by axing the former Togo and
Mali coach.
And speaking when he paid a courtesy visit to the
Minister of Sports
and Chairman, National Sports Commission, Dr.
Tamuno Danagogo
yesterday, Pinnick explained the personal safety of
Keshi was
considered more important than anything else.
Pinnck, it was learnt told the Minister that he was
shocked with the
hostile reception of the fans towards Keshi, arguing
that it would be
dangerous for Keshi to remain as coach in the face
of such hostility.
He added that it was the first time in recent years
that abuses and stones were rained down on a
Nigerian coach by fans.
“It was too much to bear. The fans were coming for
him and it was going to be a security risk for
us as people had ran out of patience and were
prepared to break the law to achieve their aim.
Keshi’s personal safety was paramount in our
decision to relieve him of his duties”, Pinnick said.
Source Vanguardng
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