By Fajar Barrie BBC Sport Online in Freetown

Sam Obi Metzger has been given the task of staying on as head coach of Leone Stars until the Sierra Leone FA decides whether they will retain him or find a foreign coach.

The Leone Stars coaching position has been vacant since last July, and it was coach Metzger who was chosen to fill in on a temporary basis.

He was called upon by the FA for the Leone Stars' last four World Cup qualifiers after the sacking of fellow local coach, Christian Cole.

Metzger will now focus on preparing his side for their 2004 African Nations qualifiers against Equatorial Guinea in September.

Already he has just announced a list of 25 home-based players to start preparing for the encounter.

Confidence

Coach Metzger told BBC Sport Online that he was happy that he had again been given the chance to serve his country.

"I'm happy that the FA has retained me for now and this is because they have confidence in me," Metzger said.

"My focus is to prepare my boys for the Equatorial Guinea match."

"I believe with good preparation we can do well in Equatorial Guinea," he added.

Metzger had served as head coach of Leone Stars on several occasions since 1992.