Keshi: Bosnia, Iran Would Be Tough Nuts To Crack For Eagles

Stephen Keshi, the Head coach of the Super Eagles, on Friday expressed worry about the preparation of the home-based Eagles, ahead of the Championship of African Nations.

The 2014 CHAN is scheduled to take place in South Africa between Jan. 11 and Feb. 1, next year.

Keshi told newsmen after the Eagles first practise match since the opening of the camp that time was the biggest problem the team faced in preparation for the championship.

"My worry is that we don't have enough time to prepare these boys. There is a lot of talent in them but there is no time to nurture it.

There are prospects in the players' style of play but we still need to do a lot of work in terms of tactical and positional play," he said.

The 'Big boss', as Keshi is popularly called, said that the only way out would be for the team to engage itself in more practise matches, just like the one against Prisons F.C., which the Eagles won 4-1.

The Super Eagles coach noted that the move of his key defender, Godfrey Obaobona, and few others to foreign clubs also added to the problem of preparing the team.

According to Keshi, "I am missing them but at the same time I am happy for them because if they do not leave, other players will not come in to take their places.

The only problem is that we now have extra jobs to do because we have to go back to the basics and start from the scratch.

Otherwise, there is nothing wrong in them going for greener pastures," he added.

On the 2014 World Cup draw, Keshi pointed out that the group was a difficult one as Bosnia-Herzegovina and the Iranian national football teams would be "tough nuts to crack".

"It is not an easy draw. Our group is very complicated because Bosnia-Herzegovina has a very good team. Iran is also good.

Everybody is saying Argentina, but we have to be very careful about Bosnia-Herzegovina and Iran.

We need good preparation and full concentration in all the games, to be able to excel in that group," Keshi said.

NAN reports that Keshi joined the Home-Eagles camp on Thursday, following his return from Brazil after the 2014 World Cup draws which paired Nigeria in Group F, with Argentina, Iran and Bosnia- Herzegovina.

30 players are currently in the team's camp which opened on Dec. 9. The team currently trains at the artificial turf of the FIFA Goal Project in package "B" of the Abuja National Stadium.