Obafemi Martins

[aykwes8]

is it me or this guy could have become more than we know him for? He had the potential to reach the same height that Samuel reached. In fact He had more raw talent than Eto'o but what really happened? He was a player i had so much hope for in the early mid 2000 and my favorite African striker until Drogba came along. I think leaving Inter for Newcastle was a bad move (maybe not financially) but...

[kalani JR]

He was never going to break into the Inter XI. The season he left they brought in Balotelli, Crespo and Zlatan plus they already had Adriano. He never developed from his early 2000s promise. As for having as much "raw talent" as Eto'o, they are not in the same zip code talk less of same league of talent, there is a reason Oba never hit past 11 league goals in Europe.

[danfo driver]

Martin's biggest problem was his injury. That is the reason he did not develop into a world class striker.

As for being more talented that Eto'o not even close. let me break it down for you this way, Samuel Eto'o is one of the most talented footballers in the history of the game. Not just "African footballer," but "footballer," period!

[aykwes8]

Martin's biggest problem was his injury. That is the reason he did not develop into a world class striker.

As for being more talented that Eto'o not even close. let me break it down for you this way, Samuel Eto'o is one of the most talented footballers in the history of the game. Not just "African footballer," but "footballer," period!

If we are going to believe the age that he said he was, yes he had more potential than Etoo as a youth. Etoo was frustrating as hell very early on in his career. Oba was more clinical and had better eye for goal earlier in his career than Eto'o had much earlier in is career. LEt's not make this Eto'o v Martins please

[aykwes8]

Martin's biggest problem was his injury. That is the reason he did not develop into a world class striker.

As for being more talented that Eto'o not even close. let me break it down for you this way, Samuel Eto'o is one of the most talented footballers in the history of the game. Not just "African footballer," but "footballer," period!

Some can argue that he had world class talent. If someone like Asamoah Gyan can be considered world class by some people, then others too can argue that Obafemi Martins was world class at some point until maybe the injuries

[kalani JR]

Martin's biggest problem was his injury. That is the reason he did not develop into a world class striker.

As for being more talented that Eto'o not even close. let me break it down for you this way, Samuel Eto'o is one of the most talented footballers in the history of the game. Not just "African footballer," but "footballer," period!

If we are going to believe the age that he said he was, yes he had more potential than Etoo as a youth. Etoo was frustrating as hell very early on in his career. Oba was more clinical and had better eye for goal earlier in his career than Eto'o had much earlier in is career. LEt's not make this Eto'o v Martins please

This is not true by 24 Eto'o became (and still is) Mallorca's all time top scorer. By the same age we knew what the endgame with Martins was.

[aykwes8]

Martin's biggest problem was his injury. That is the reason he did not develop into a world class striker.

As for being more talented that Eto'o not even close. let me break it down for you this way, Samuel Eto'o is one of the most talented footballers in the history of the game. Not just "African footballer," but "footballer," period!

If we are going to believe the age that he said he was, yes he had more potential than Etoo as a youth. Etoo was frustrating as hell very early on in his career. Oba was more clinical and had better eye for goal earlier in his career than Eto'o had much earlier in is career. LEt's not make this Eto'o v Martins please

This is not true by 24 Eto'o became (and still is) Mallorca's all time top scorer. By the same age we knew what the endgame with Martins was.

You may be right. maybe he did not have more potential than Eto'o. He was one of my favorite players growing up and maybe I'm just nostalgic. I read Moise Kean's wikipedia's page and it says he is a fan of Inter Milan and Obafemi was his favorite player. that reminded me of Obafemi and how good he actually was and what I thought of him back in his Inter days

[bepanda]

Beside Speed, what else did Martins have? I get annoyed with people consider Speed a football talent.
Comparing Martins to THE KING shows ... the man doesn't even know what he is talking about. Just want to throw names out there. Why didn't you just say Messi or Ronaldo .. HELL Pele or Diego Armando?
Bepanda

is it me or this guy could have become more than we know him for? He had the potential to reach the same height that Samuel reached. In fact He had more raw talent than Eto'o but what really happened? He was a player i had so much hope for in the early mid 2000 and my favorite African striker until Drogba came along. I think leaving Inter for Newcastle was a bad move (maybe not financially) but...

[john12]

I was one of obagoal best supporters and although I believe that he made a wrong decision moving to Newcastle from inter he can still hold his head high. Obagoal wasn’t just a speed merchant he was a scorer of “GREAT GOALS” the man had power, pace, can jump, skillful and late in his career became intelligent. His best attributes were “speed” and “shooting power” obagoal almost scored one of the greatest goals in the history of EPL Vs Liverpool he volleyed the ball from the center line only for it to hit the cross bar. Also, obagoal was very unprofessional as in nightlife, womanizing etc and that affected his career. I don’t think he was as good as etoo but he showed more talent than DROGBA as a youngster at Inter Milan and could had became a great one with the assistance of a big club

[Rawlings]

BTW, Obafemi made a good choice in private life.

Naijaman, If you want to live long, marry Ghana woman

[Cristao II]

Inter fans will remember Martins with nostalgia - that time the club had Vieri, Cruz, Obagoal and Adriano. What a lineup...

[Senator WIRES]

BTW, Obafemi made a good choice in private life.

Naijaman, If you want to live long, marry Ghana woman

Please negro!! she is Italian just like her breda..Mario

[Cally]

Beside Speed, what else did Martins have? I get annoyed with people consider Speed a football talent.
Comparing Martins to THE KING shows ... the man doesn't even know what he is talking about. Just want to throw names out there. Why didn't you just say Messi or Ronaldo .. HELL Pele or Diego Armando?
Bepanda

is it me or this guy could have become more than we know him for? He had the potential to reach the same height that Samuel reached. In fact He had more raw talent than Eto'o but what really happened? He was a player i had so much hope for in the early mid 2000 and my favorite African striker until Drogba came along. I think leaving Inter for Newcastle was a bad move (maybe not financially) but...

You obviously don't know Martins well. Besides speed, he has high football IQ, solid technique, very good dribbling skills, excellent control on the turn (used that to destroy many a defender), excellent positional play, powerful shot, and heart. He's still revered in Seattle, WA after almost singularly carrying the Sounders to the championship. Obafemi remains underrated after constantly showing his worth.

[kajifu]

Obagoal was more talented than Drogba,what he did to Toure inter vs Arsenal was sad,he almost end Toure playing career.

[deanotito]

I think Martins was a good baller but was not as great as some of his opportunities (read Inter) demanded. He was a good 15 goal/season striker when Inter was trying to assert itself as a power.
They needed more, and better. My sense is that Martins would have thrived in the shadow of a world class striker….playing off him….Or in a kind of air-raid attack, where he’s one of 3 strikers that run at a defense. He’s quick, has a decent eye for goal and can trouble a defense….but he’s not the guy you bet the farm on.
I do believe that for Nigeria, he was underutilized. Still kick myself to think Ameobi was taken to the 2014 dance over Martins. Its flat out unbelievable. Tactics also had been his undoing from time to time…you can’t leave Martins as a sole striker to be contending with 2 or more defenders…He’s not a diamond type striker. He needs support.
I remember at the 2010 WC, where Nigeria just wouldn’t bench Aiyegbeni. I was so livid with the coaches. Aiyegbeni was the best sole striker in the team, but his quality wasn’t good enough to unlock opposition defenses consistently. The better tactic was for Nigeria to play a 4-3-3 with Martins in the middle, flanked by Utaka and Obasi….It would have put the PURE fear of God in opposition defenses. While we would have lost in Aiyegbeni’s relatively better marksmanship, we would have gained much more in chances created.

Anyway, in conclusion…Martins was a good baller, but talent wise, was at the mercy of a lot of external factors in order to blossom.

[kolinzo]

Martins is a professional footballer. He goes wherever his service is needed. He was the best thing since slice bread. But I'm still appalled by half-success SE story. Him/Osaze disappointed me. It was a wasted generation. For some reason he didn't really get along with other SE on the football pitch, in his prime! His talented was wasted by many SE's manager. But he is still the son of the soil. Oba Martins! Obagoal!

[kalani JR]

His son is at Inter and played at the Torneo delle Sirene.

[Larry Ashagbe 1]

I was one of obagoal best supporters and although I believe that he made a wrong decision moving to Newcastle from inter he can still hold his head high. Obagoal wasn’t just a speed merchant he was a scorer of “GREAT GOALS” the man had power, pace, can jump, skillful and late in his career became intelligent. His best attributes were “speed” and “shooting power” obagoal almost scored one of the greatest goals in the history of EPL Vs Liverpool he volleyed the ball from the center line only for it to hit the cross bar. Also, obagoal was very unprofessional as in nightlife, womanizing etc and that affected his career. I don’t think he was as good as etoo but he showed more talent than DROGBA as a youngster at Inter Milan and could had became a great one with the assistance of a big club

I don't have the time to write long story about Oba Martins.

Below is a quick summary.

The boy was good at his prime than most people give him credit for.

He his currently club less and has been replaced by Ighalo at Shanghai Greenland Shenhua F.C.

Martin's downfall is his lifestyle outside the pitch and I am even surprised that he has had a career as long as this and his contemporary Ayo Stephen Makinwa retired 4 years ago and he was 100 times more disciplined than Martins.

I know the boy very well and I gave him advise but never listens, so I left him alone.

This could be the end of Martins if he cannot get over his current injury and find another club.

Life is funny the way its deals out our cards and destiny.

In my opinion, Oba Martins had everything i.e. pace, power, technique, intelligence, good spring and above all, for a little man, he can jump higher than most defenders.

Here is brief summary.

Martins has been in the Inter Primavera (youth teams) and doing wonderful things scoring impressive goals.

His exploit in the Inter Primavera (youth teams) was brought to the attention of the then coach Hector Cuper.

Champions League match against Arsenal in London came up and due to injuries and suspensions, Hector Cuper had no striker and had to look to look for cover and replacement.

Replacement came in the form of Oba Martins.

Go and ask Kolo Toure and Sol Campbell what Martins dis to them on the match in Emirates.

That was the announcement of Martin on the international stage and that propelled him to stardom and he was promoted to first team and getting more regular playing time with the start studded Inter team at the time.

Below are excerpt from some of the links

https://www.theguardian.com/football/20 ... nute.sport

10: A hit-and-hope cross comes into the Arsenal box. Campbell swings a peg and connects with nothing. It was such a clever dummy that it completely threw Martins, standing unmarked behind him, and the danger passes. Just what on earth has happened to Campbell? He seems to have become an awful defender almost over night.

27: Arsenal are all over the place. Only a perfectly-timed Toure tackle prevents Martins adding number three. If he'd have misjudged that it was a certain penalty. Talking of which...

35: Emre's pass almost puts Martins in again. That boy is class. An untidy last-ditch challenge from Toure again just holds him off.

41: Goal time! Arsenal 0 - 3 Inter Oh. My. Word. Martins gets the goal he has spent every second of the first 40 minutes threatening to score. Emre saunters off on a seemingly directionless dribble, but somehow manages to reverse it to Martins. The teenager holds off Campbell, then stays on his feet when the England man - the supposed rock of our national team's defence - tries to amputate him at the knee. Boom! He cracks it home powerfully. Three-nil: Arsenal are in disarray. Hector Cuper is smoking a cigarette with what looks like post-coital delight. And Martins somersaults half the length of the pitch.


90: Inter substitute Kallon (who obviously sneaked on without me noticing, ahem) jinks his way through the Arsenal defence with the help of a one-two with Cruz. He's clean through, steadies himself and drills it against the foot of the post. Martins fires the rebound high and wide. That would have been the glace cherry on top of the icing on the cake.


https://www.skysports.com/football/arse ... nter/36766

Comments on Martins at

https://www.inter.it/it/news/8983/inter ... i-compagni

https://www.inter.it/en/news/14380/inte ... 4-strikers

https://www.inter.it/it/news/9308/tre-p ... mi-martins


Oba Martins paving the way for other Nigerians to get opportunies as Inter. See link below

https://www.inter-news.it/giovanili/awu ... ipetibile/

https://www.google.com/search?q=obafemi ... tvvWqCz4nM:


I have plenty more to tell but don't have the time to write.

Good night.

[bepanda]

This description you gave below is why Martins is clubless. I don't see any soccer skills in the description you gave below.
Pace, Power are not soccer skills. Usain Bold and Carl Lewis would be amazing soccer players if true.

Could he shoot with accuracy? Left footed? Right footed?
Could he cross the ball with accuracy?
Could he separate on narrow distances?
How is his change of direction?
Because he can jump doesn't mean he can actually time his jumps and score headers. I don't even remember him scoring headers in his career.
Could he score from outside the box?
Any dribbling skills? Martins was never known for any above average dribbling skills.
And people compare him with THE KING who is still banging goals and getting paid handsomely for it ...
En serio !!!

In my opinion, Oba Martins had everything i.e. pace, power, technique, intelligence, good spring and above all, for a little man, he can jump higher than most defenders.

[maceo4]

How is Martins clubless? He’s currently recovering from an injury but plays in China.

[Larry Ashagbe 1]

How is Martins clubless? He’s currently recovering from an injury but plays in China.

I can confirm that Martins is clubless.

He has been injured for a long time and failed to recover and when he contract was up for renewal, he was cut by his club and replaced by Ighalo.

I don't really follow Martins that much because he was a silly boy and never listens and hence, I stop contacting him since about 10 years ago.

I was told by his friends that he does NOT have a club and these people are credible.

Please link below for you to see how long he has been out of football.

https://www.premiumtimesng.com/sports/f ... rgery.html

[Larry Ashagbe 1]

This description you gave below is why Martins is clubless. I don't see any soccer skills in the description you gave below.
Pace, Power are not soccer skills. Usain Bold and Carl Lewis would be amazing soccer players if true.

Could he shoot with accuracy? Left footed? Right footed?
Could he cross the ball with accuracy?
Could he separate on narrow distances?
How is his change of direction?
Because he can jump doesn't mean he can actually time his jumps and score headers. I don't even remember him scoring headers in his career.
Could he score from outside the box?
Any dribbling skills? Martins was never known for any above average dribbling skills.
And people compare him with THE KING who is still banging goals and getting paid handsomely for it ...
En serio !!!

In my opinion, Oba Martins had everything i.e. pace, power, technique, intelligence, good spring and above all, for a little man, he can jump higher than most defenders.

Martin might not be in the same mould as Eto'o.

I don't know how long you have been watching football for but he was a player in his days.

His lifestyle did not HELP either and he did not always give 100%.

It is NOT easy to come from Africa and make it to Inter's first team.

People like Martins, Etoo etc has paved the way for others and the Europeans have recognised that there are talents in Africa.

[Bigpokey24]

Obafemi was a world class striker, one of the best to play for the SE, and currently miles ahead compared to any we have now..fact not feelings...