The Ivorian Football Federation [FIF] has released a list of 59 coaches who applied to coach the country’s national football team, the Elephants. Listed among the applicants is Super Eagles Coach, Stephen Keshi, who the Nigeria Football Federation handed a new deal in April.
Keshi, listed number 20 on the list of applicants is one of two African coaches jostling to coach the Elephants, the other being Ivorian Yelato Silue, number 4 on the list. Most of the other 57 coaches are Europeans.
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) confirmed it will investigate reports that national team coach Stephen Keshi applied to manage Ivory Coast. On Friday, the Ivorian Football Federation (FIF) announced it had received 59 applications in the race to succeed Herve Renard. The list will be then be narrowed down to three who will be interviewed.
Keshi returned as Nigeria coach for the third time in April by signing a two-year contract with the NFF. In his first spell he won the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations but the deal was not renewed after the 2014 World Cup. He later returned on a match-by-match deal, which ended in November 2014 after failure to reach the 2015 Nations Cup.
As caretaker coach, Keshi endured a turbulent 2014, in which he was sacked by the NFF and only reinstalled after intervention from then Nigeria President Goodluck Jonathan.
Keshi, who also won the Nations Cup as a player with Nigeria in 1994, declined to comment on his decision to apply to manage the African champions.
