*Undated
Sierra Leone coach John Keister has revealed that he received death threats prior to naming his squad for the Africa Cup of Nations.
The 51-year-old received two threats – regarding the inclusion of certain players – a day before announcing his 28-man squad and reported them to police in the west African country.
“I think it’s very, very sad that it has to come to this,” Manchester-born Keister told BBC Sport Africa on January 4th. “Whatever walk of life you are in, nobody deserves that.”
Keister added: “I don’t think it should get to that point where my life is being threatened because people feel players should be in (the squad) – and if they are not, this is what they are going to do.”
Keister featured for several British clubs, including Walsall and non-league Margate, during his playing career and was capped by Sierra Leone between 1997 and 2003.
He is in his second spell as national coach and has led the Leone Stars, ranked 108th in the world, to the tournament finals for the first time since 1996.
“We have come a long way so there’s no reason for the death threats,” added Keister. “I’ve got a family, I look after these boys and I have a job to do. It gets me angry and for me, where I have come from and my background, I feel there is something I need to do about it. Regardless of the job, I need to do something about it.”
His squad, including one-time England defender Steven Caulker and former Middlesbrough striker Kei Kamara, 37, will face holders Algeria, Ivory Coast and Equatorial Guinea in Group E at the Africa Nations Cup.
They will begin their campaign on January 11th against the Desert Foxes at the Japoma Stadium in Douala.
AFCON 2022 Groups:
Group A: Cameroon (hosts), Burkina Faso, Cape Verde Islands, Ethiopia
Group B: Guinea, Malawi, Senegal, Zimbabwe
Group C: Comoros Island, Gabon, Ghana, Morocco
Group D: Egypt, Guinea Bissau, Nigeria, Sudan
Group E: Algeria, Equatorial Guinea, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone
Group F: Gambia, Mali, Mauritania, Tunisia
AFCON 2021 Fixtures:
Group stage round 1:
-Sunday, January 9
8pm: Cameroon v Burkina Faso / 11pm: Ethiopia v Cape Verde
-Monday, January 10
5pm: Senegal v Zimbabwe / 8pm: Guinea v Malawi / 8pm: Morocco v Ghana / 11pm: Comoros v Gabon
-Tuesday, January 11
5pm: Alergia v Sierra Leone / 8pm: Egypt v Nigeria / 11pm: Sudan v Guinea-Bissau
-Wednesday, January 12
5pm: Tunisia v Mali / 8pm: Mauritania v Gambia / 11pm: Equatorial Guinea v Ivory Coast
Group stage round 2:
-Thursday, January 13
8pm: Cameroon v Ethiopia / 11pm: Cape Verde v Burkina Faso
-Friday, January 14
5pm: Senegal v Guinea / 8pm: Malawi v Zimbabwe / 8pm: Morocco v Comoros / 11pm: Gabon v Ghana
-Saturday, January 15
8pm: Nigeria v Sudan / 11pm: Guinea-Bissau v Egypt
-Saturday, January 16
5pm: Gambia v Mali / 8pm: Tunisia v Mauritania / 8pm: Ivory Coast v Sierra Leone / 11pm: Algeria v Equatorial Guinea
Group stage round 3:
-Friday, January 17
8pm: Burkina Faso v Ethiopia / Cameroon v Cape Verde
-Saturday, January 18
8pm: Malawi v Senegal / Zimbabwe v Guinea / 11pm: Gabon v Morocco / Ghana v Comoros
-Sunday, January 19
11pm: Guinea-Bissau v Nigeria / Egypt v Sudan
-Monday, January 20
8pm: Sierra Leone v Equatorial Guinea / Ivory Coast v Algeria / 11pm: Gambia v Tunisia / Mali v Mauritania