Ilerika: Okocha not in my class!!

[okidoki]

iLLERIKA FAILS TO UNDERSTAND THAT FITNESS LEVELS OF PLAYERS HAS SICE IMPROVED SINCE HE RETIRED,HE SHOULD GIVE HONOR TO WHOM IT IS DUE,oKOCHA IS A STAR NO MATTER WHAT ANYONE OF US THINKS THERE IN NIGER OR OUT OF IT.

[Its a Goal]

iLLERIKA FAILS TO UNDERSTAND THAT FITNESS LEVELS OF PLAYERS HAS SICE IMPROVED SINCE HE RETIRED,HE SHOULD GIVE HONOR TO WHOM IT IS DUE,oKOCHA IS A STAR NO MATTER WHAT ANYONE OF US THINKS THERE IN NIGER OR OUT OF IT.

I doubt if anyone living in Niger gives a damn, but surely everyone living in Naija does .

[Damunk]

Very few people here, if any, have actually SEEN this guy Ilerika play. Are we not sure that the myth isn't greater than the reality? A little like 'Thunder'?
Ilerika's legend goes back to when he was in secondary school. He was said to have dribbled all his opponents up to the goal line, sat on the ball and waited for a few seconds before casually rolling it across the line. If you missed the first thirty seconds of any of his matches, you were sure to miss his first goal...etc etc.

Someone who DID see him play, and who had dealings with him (as well as Okocha) on a professional level, was Chief Olukanmi, former IICC Director and NFA board member, who told Cybereagles in an interview last year:

" Dont even compare Ilerika to Okocha. Ilerika had only one leg. Left. If the ball came to his right, he had to 'dress' it to the left first."

http://www.cybereagles.com/interviews/default.asp?id=28

I dont think Chief's opinion should be so easily dismissed, even tho at the end of the day, its still a subjective opinion. But at least he was old enough and experienced enough to make a credible assessment.

For instance, how many years did Ilerika play at the top level for?
Was he even a Green Eagles regular sef? Was he ever first on the team list?

[Sir V]

Very few people here, if any, have actually SEEN this guy Ilerika play. Are we not sure that the myth isn't greater than the reality? A little like 'Thunder'?
Ilerika's legend goes back to when he was in secondary school. He was said to have dribbled all his opponents up to the goal line, sat on the ball and waited for a few seconds before casually rolling it across the line. If you missed the first thirty seconds of any of his matches, you were sure to miss his first goal...etc etc.

Someone who DID see him play, and who had dealings with him (as well as Okocha) on a professional level, was Chief Olukanmi, former IICC Director and NFA board member, who told Cybereagles in an interview last year:

" Dont even compare Ilerika to Okocha. Ilerika had only one leg. Left. If the ball came to his right, he had to 'dress' it to the left first."

http://www.cybereagles.com/interviews/default.asp?id=28

I dont think Chief's opinion should be so easily dismissed, even tho at the end of the day, its still a subjective opinion. But at least he was old enough and experienced enough to make a credible assessment.

For instance, how many years did Ilerika play at the top level for?
Was he even a Green Eagles regular sef? Was he ever first on the team list?

Chief is right. I watched Ilerika several times in those days and I have to say Ilerika was ok but not in the same class as okocha.

Ilerika played for Nigeria from 1972 to about 1976 and he was a regular player. The last time I saw him played was during the Challenge cup( Benin Zone) in 1978,then he was with Stationery stores and they had to play against spartan of Owerri, Taraba Fc Gongola and Raccah Rovers of Kano to qualify for the Semi final.

[camex]

Very few people here, if any, have actually SEEN this guy Ilerika play. Are we not sure that the myth isn't greater than the reality? A little like 'Thunder'?
Ilerika's legend goes back to when he was in secondary school. He was said to have dribbled all his opponents up to the goal line, sat on the ball and waited for a few seconds before casually rolling it across the line. If you missed the first thirty seconds of any of his matches, you were sure to miss his first goal...etc etc.

Someone who DID see him play, and who had dealings with him (as well as Okocha) on a professional level, was Chief Olukanmi, former IICC Director and NFA board member, who told Cybereagles in an interview last year:

" Dont even compare Ilerika to Okocha. Ilerika had only one leg. Left. If the ball came to his right, he had to 'dress' it to the left first."

http://www.cybereagles.com/interviews/default.asp?id=28

I dont think Chief's opinion should be so easily dismissed, even tho at the end of the day, its still a subjective opinion. But at least he was old enough and experienced enough to make a credible assessment.

For instance, how many years did Ilerika play at the top level for?
Was he even a Green Eagles regular sef? Was he ever first on the team list?

guys i just read this comment and while I dont know these two players here, I am gonna ask the question, how many legs did Diego have?

[Bell]

WAS HE EVEN A GREEN EAGLES REGULAR SEF?


Sorry, damunk, but this is a question only somebody who didn't see Ilerika would ask. And if the honorable chief said Ilerika only had a left foot he was correct. I'm surprised he didn't add that he was diminutive and probably never weighed more than 165 lbs, fully loaded with food and water.

Which makes his accomplishments all the more amazing. When I first heard about him I thought he was the recipient of typical Lagos hype. Until I saw him myself. It got to the point when, surrounded by three defenders, you didn't worry. You only waited in anticipation of what new trick he would unveil.

He was more than a regular: in his day he mas the MAN in the Eagles. (The late) Yakubu Mambo and Sunday Oyarekhua were the main scorers on the team but it was Haruna who set the table and invited the others to dinner.

When I joined this site several years ago I brought his name up and I was surprised that few people knew about him. I couldn't believe the players who were rated above him, if he was rated at all.

Was he better than JJ? I can't say with objectivity because the situations were different. But don't underestimate Haruna's era because all the best players lived in the country then. One thing I can say for sure is that I haven't seen two players born of Nigerian parents that are better than Haruna.
Bell

[omotori]

"Haruna dakun jowo, iya re lo ni nbe o"

meaning - "Harun please spare us, Your mother asked us to beg you"

Unforunately I do not recall too much about Haruna besides the above chant at Surulere & Liberty.

But I also remember Haruna dribbling people & then sitting on the ball.

The big question is how would Haruna place in todays football. I think he may have the same problem as JJ - pace with the ball.

The next Haruna or JJ must forego over-dribbling & focus on pace & purposefullness more.

[Robbynice]

iLLERIKA FAILS TO UNDERSTAND THAT FITNESS LEVELS OF PLAYERS HAS SICE IMPROVED SINCE HE RETIRED,HE SHOULD GIVE HONOR TO WHOM IT IS DUE,oKOCHA IS A STAR NO MATTER WHAT ANYONE OF US THINKS THERE IN NIGER OR OUT OF IT.

I doubt if anyone living in Niger gives a damn, but surely everyone living in Naija does .

okidoki, no mind IAG jare. I am sure everybody living in Niger state just like in other states in Naija gives a damn about Okocha .

[Chief Gabtigab]

The fact that Ilerika was able to dribble some local defenders and some Congolese journeymen should not give him the right to flex his muscles as a great footballer. Had he tried the same tricks against the Italian defenders of those days, then he would have been in a position to open his mouth.

Even as a basher I'll pick JJ ahead of this yeye local champion.

[1naija]

The fact that Ilerika was able to dribble some local defenders and some Congolese journeymen should not give him the right to flex his muscles as a great footballer. Had he tried the same tricks against the Italian defenders of those days, then he would have been in a position to open his mouth.

Even as a basher I'll pick JJ ahead of this yeye local champion.

My broda, me I don tire for these local champions and their tory. Even more surprising is the number of people here that still consider the nonsense played back then as football. The fact that Ilerika could dribble his opponents and still had time to sit on the ball tells a lot about (a) the quality of the opponent, (b) the standard of football played in Africa back then, and (c) the professionalism of the African teams back then.

[Jimi]

Why is is that anytime ex-Nigerian internationals speak, their quotes reek of bitterness and jealousy? They did their part and we respect them for it, even though I wasn't even born when this Ilerika cat was doing his thing in his prime..I believe that he was a baller, but he needs to curtail this type of tirade in the future. Okocha remains as one of the best ever. Period.

[Chief Gabtigab]

The fact that Ilerika was able to dribble some local defenders and some Congolese journeymen should not give him the right to flex his muscles as a great footballer. Had he tried the same tricks against the Italian defenders of those days, then he would have been in a position to open his mouth.

Even as a basher I'll pick JJ ahead of this yeye local champion.

My broda, me I don tire for these local champions and their tory. Even more surprising is the number of people here that still consider those nonsense played back then as football. The fact that Ilerika could dribbling his opponents and still had time to sit on the ball tells a lot about (a) the quality of the opponent, (b) the standard of football played in Africa back then, and (c) the professionalism of the African teams back then.

Happy new year my broda.

I'm glad the new year has not changed you from seeing and speaking the truth.

[1naija]

The fact that Ilerika was able to dribble some local defenders and some Congolese journeymen should not give him the right to flex his muscles as a great footballer. Had he tried the same tricks against the Italian defenders of those days, then he would have been in a position to open his mouth.

Even as a basher I'll pick JJ ahead of this yeye local champion.

My broda, me I don tire for these local champions and their tory. Even more surprising is the number of people here that still consider those nonsense played back then as football. The fact that Ilerika could dribbling his opponents and still had time to sit on the ball tells a lot about (a) the quality of the opponent, (b) the standard of football played in Africa back then, and (c) the professionalism of the African teams back then.

Happy new year my broda.

I'm glad the new year has not changed you from seeing and speaking the truth.

Happy New Year to you too.

[airwolex]

Okocha is a good intelligent dribbler though.

I beg to differ.

Na wa for oga Fegwu; you shrine a skilless guy like Olofinjana and bash the most gifted footballer of our generation. Is it that you like robotic football or is it just sentiments?

[akamoke]

No offense to Ilerika, as Im sure he was a good player in his time, but ifindeed he was that good, he would be recognized in the world over, one way or the other, George Weah, Ndlovu were spotted even though they played for poor teams, so too Eusebio before him before he moved to Portugal

I do not see how he was a better player than Okocha is now

[tolahs]

"Everyone thinks he's got the prettiest wife at home" Arsene Wenger


Something to that effect

[NigerianPiedPiPeR]

i dont agree..we are in JJ's era...this guy might have been better..who knows? i guess they are both great players in their own right.

Nigeria's own Samuel Eto'o! Serious diarrhoea of the mouth.

I couldn't agree more . There's a saying that goes: "If you have nothing good to say, say nothing". Illerika should simply keep the pie hole in his face shut before he ruins the little PR left in his legacy :x.

[Bell]

akamoke


Take it from me: Ilerika is no hype. If he was playing today, he'd head the list of Nigerians playing overseas and for top clubs. It just so happened that he played in an era when transfers even within Europe were rare. And transfers involving Africans was virtually non-existent. England didn't have too many players that weren't British and white until a few years ago.

And I reiterate again that he didn't play in a diluted Nigerian league becuase all the best players in Nigeria played in Nigeria. It's like having a domestic league in Nigeria today with the likes of JJ, Kanu, Yobo, JAg, Yak, Uche, Odimwigie, Babayaro, Martins, etc all playing in it.
Bell

[HAWKEYE]

I have ignored this post earlier but wish to add my voice now as someone who has seen decades of naija football and have watched both Ilerika and JJ in the national team.

Nigeria has been blessed with sleek and skillful playmakers since the days of "Atinga" Woma, Friday Okoh, Albert Onyeawuna, Haruna Ilerika, Okwaraji, Muda Lawal, Henry Nwosu and lately JJ.

A more pertinent question to ponder over is:

Which of the two is more effective in terms of team play and contribution to team success between the two??

Whilst I cannot vouch for the veracity of the statements credited to Ilerika, if I were to answer my own (above) question......

........I'll vote for Ilerika ahead of JJ.........

If I were to choose between the two, who is more crafty/skillful and talented , I'll say ......IT'S A DRAW!!

[packerland]

Nigeria's own Samuel Eto'o! Serious diarrhoea of the mouth.

When did Eto´o ever compare himself with others?

you must be on Sabaticca, the guy said he was better than Ronaldo even while he was playing at a no name club.

[spastic]

I saw a couple of Illerika's games and I remeber back then my dad an uncle boasting about the skill of some superstar who played in the sixties and how the likes of Ilerika could not come close to touching those guys, how they played real soccer back then etc, etc, etc.
I remeber telling my uncle afew years later (early to mid eighties) that I would be saying thesame type of stuff to the next generation about Segun Osegbami and Muda lawal as I only caught the fringe end of Illerika's reign.

Fortunately for me though I embrased a new philosophy, one that lets logic, stats, and comparative analysis serve as the backdrop for deciphering this overwjhelmingly simple question.

who is better Okocha or Ilerika.
I f ilerika were to be better then we must assume that most of the other Nigerian starters were very average, coz how come he/they failed to win anything of note, be it personal (ILLerika himself) or Group(theEagles as a whole)
And If the other players were average as thought then Illerika's skills must have been a little overated due to inferrior competition.

Now personally I saw Illerika 2wice. I doubt their is anyone (and if there is please correct me) here who has seen illerika play over 20 games all together, lets not forget you had to go see him live or every now and then watch poor TV feeds. Most of the Illerika supporter on this site saw some of the man and a battalion dose of his myth. Now compare that to okocha, who in the 10 years I must have seen over 200 games in which he featured, and I am not an avid fan of his I bet there are folks who have seen him play in about 4 to 500 games, all I am trying to say is we have a large enough body of evidence to judge okocha on, On illerika it's a wash (A guesstimate).

Furthermore say all you want about how hard it was to transfer and all that, and that might be true, but please don't forget that in the midst of his fellow africans whom he could play against every 2 years Illerika could not find himself on top, and those africans who were better than Illerika were inferior to the Europeans and South Americans, of the time. so we could assume he was no match for the Krankls, Neeskens, Cruyff, Maier and Ardilles, Rivelino and Mario Kempes of his time. And teams that beat his team (Eagles) were getting hammered regularly by those guys.

1 thing allegedly said by Illerika is that rings true to me is this , he thought if Okocha had played in his era Okocha would have been the local champion and only heard of in his area, coz there were so many talented guys. In the end that was all Illerika really was a Local Champion who's myth outweighed his stats and accomplishment.

Okocha without a doubt in my mind is the best player to ever refer to himself as a nigerian, and I don't even like him.

Illerika "wondrous dribbles" on the other hand belongs to the same category as Thunder Balogun's "unstoppable shot" and Sege's "Invisibility on the Touchline". "THE ANALS OF MYTHOLOGY"

[1naija]

In the end that was all Illerika really was a Local Champion who's myth outweighed his stats and accomplishment.

Okocha without a doubt in my mind is the best player to ever refer to himself as a nigerian, and I don't even like him.

Illerika "wondrous dribbles" on the other hand belongs to the same category as Thunder Balogun's "unstoppable shot" and Sege's "Invisibility on the Touchline". "THE ANALS OF MYTHOLOGY"

The word local champion is starting to resonate in these discussions. I maintain that any player, no matter how good, that dribbled his opponents to the extent that he had time to sit on the ball before scoring must have done so against very local, timid and primitive footballers, and should not be taken seriously.

[Enugu II]

I saw both players and actually saw Ilerika from his very first year in the national team until his career was over.

IMO, Ilerika was good but he cannot be better than JJ. Yes, there are several players during his era who were better than some of our starters today but not in this case. JJ is a better player not only qualitatively but also when one investigates the appearances, stats, & laurels (limiting those to play against African opposition by both).

Ilerika, as someone mentioned here, was largely a one-footed player. His dribbling runs were not unique. Ilerika simply did the same dribbles you saw in playgrounds whereas JJ's variety of dribbles include those that only he has the signature. In the long run, JJ will not be compared to Ilerika but he will be vying for the accolade of Nigeria's Best Player Ever.

Ilerika is more favorably compared to the likes of Henry Nwosu and not JJ. I think that if you investigate his career with the SE that is where he fits and not with JJ. For instance, Ilerika had his debut in a game against Liberia on November 29, 1972 and was a key player at the 2nd All Africa Games a year later but by 1974 he was no longer one of the irreplaceable guys on the team and he had several games in which he either was not started or he had to be substituted. That is a far cry from JJ's career where he has been Nigeria's numero uno for years now.

I, however, wonder if Ilerika made those statements. If he did then it falls into the classic howler which he made about a year ago when he was quoted as chiding the current stars about discipline claiming that during his days all the players were indeed early to camp and disciplined. I remember posting then that Ilerika forgot that he fell into the bad books of Coach Tiko in the late 1970s when he chose to attend camp from his Lagos home instead of residing in camp at Ogunlana Drive along with his team mates. Enough said.