Keshi Rules out Ike Uche from World Cup

Stephen Keshi,

Duro Ikhazuagbe with agency reports

Super Eagles Head Coach, Stephen Keshi, has ruled out out-of-favour-striker, Ikechukwu Uche, from Nigeria’s party to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, insisting that the Villarreal of Spain player lacks tactical discipline.
With Uche’s blazing form for the La Liga team, scoring 12 goals so far this season, there have been calls for the recall of the forward to the Super Eagles.

But yesterday, Keshi who returned to California (USA) from Brazil after attending the FIFA seminar for all the 32 qualified teams’ coaches and officials insisted that there was no room for a player like Ike Uche in his team to the Mundial.
Uche last featured for Nigeria in the final of the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations against Burkina Faso.

“Ikechukwu Uche is not a player I have not seen play. Ike Uche’s problem is not knowing how to play football.
“His problem is that he wants to dictate how we play in Super Eagles. He wants to tell us the system we’re playing is not good.
“Uche has a very bad habit, that if you put him in the game he is not playing to instructions and he did that in the final of AFCON against Burkina Faso, he almost cost us that match.

“Again, he did that against Zambia, in the second match when (Efe)Ambrose was given a red card. What we told him to do, he was doing the opposite,” stressed the former Togo and Mali gaffer.

Keshi added:”And if you don’t respect your team mates and you don’t respect the team, then there is no point. I know he cannot do that in his club, then why do it in the national team?

“I don’t think I need a player like that in the team,” stressed Keshi with finality in his chat with MTNFootball.com.
The Big Boss as Keshi is fondly called also revealed yesterday that he has given up on injured striker, Bright Dike, from recovering to make Nigeria’s party to the World Cup in June. The Toronto FC striker Dike injured his Achilles tendon in training and last week successfully underwent surgery.

“It was a very sad news,” stated Keshi.
“He is a great kid and it’s sad he sustained the injury which will keep him out of the World Cup proper not just the Mexico friendly.” Asked if he has plans to call a replacement for Dike for the Mexico friendly, Keshi said, “I would have loved to, but the time is too short.”
Nigeria will take on Mexico next Wednesday in Atlanta, Georgia, in a friendly as part of Super Eagles build-up for the World Cup in June.