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Sierra Leone National Team Head Coach, John Keister has sent message of hope to Sierra Leoneans ahead of their clash against Super Eagles of Nigeria.
“Yes, we have challenges but we are very very optimistic going into this match,” Keister said.
He drew reference to his playing days as a Leone Stars player when they faced a star-studded Nigerian team but managed to get a good result.
“They thought we had no chance because they had the better players in the world that time,” he said.
He said that irrespective of how good the Nigerian team is, his players will be out there representing Sierra Leone.
The Manchester-born appreciated the SLFA’s Secretariat for helping them start early preparation ahead of the Nigeria match.
Keister has already announced a 38-man tentative team.
The team is mostly made up of home-based players and they are set to start training at the Southern Arena in Bo city.
“We are looking at the home based players because the (local) league is going on and I think we recognise that if players outside (Sierra Leone) as well as they should in terms of minutes, it is important we look at the home based players,” Keister said.
Sierra Leone will play Nigeria on June 18 in Liberia and need a win to keep their dreams alive in the match day 5 fixture.
A draw will see Super Eagles progress to the finals in Ivory Coast next year.
Leone Stars will play their final match in Group A against Guinea Bissau away.
