Re: Young Nigerians in the EPL: The Next Generation
Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2018 1:06 pm
Martins will most likely enter anyone's top 50 list, but my point was more about fabio's reference to Mba and Oboabona.Eaglezbeak wrote:ouch but yeah I understand,even Martins didn't make your list so a one hit wonder and a?Damunk wrote:Fabio, Fabiyo, Fabiyaro...fabio wrote:You are wrong, very wrong.Damunk wrote:
I don't know whether anyone realises that the last player from the local Nigerian league to make a real international impact for the full SE was ......Ahmed Musa.
How many years ago was that?
Please correct me if I am wrong.
Sunday Mbu
Godfrey Oboabona
How many times did I call your name?
I deliberately said "make a real international impact" for the SE, not "feature for" or "score for"
I am talking about players that will make the Nigerian Hall of Fame.
Let me give you an idea of the calibre of players that have made the kind of 'real international impact' I refer to:
JJ
Kanu
Yekini
Odegbami
Chukwu
Aiyegbeni
Adokiye
Mikel
Amuneke
Amokachi
Keshi
Enyeama
Finidi
There are many, many more.
Make a list of Nigeria's top 50 GOAT players and neither Mba nor Oboabona will enter.
You gerrit now?
But the thing is these English based kids have potential because they are youth and are training in good environments (outside Nigeria) and that is why England will definitely have first choice if any of them show promise,Nigeria may get a few scraps but they might not even get as far as Mba,it's hard to tell since non of them have played constantly at senior level.
Those on my list are just an indication of the calibre of players Naija has produced of which Mba and Oboabona do not belong IMHO.
As for your well-made point about 'first choice', most of the time they will, but first choice isn't necessarily 'best' choice. It is entirely subjective. Like I pointed out earlier, if Argentina has 5 Messis, they can't all play and there will be those that choose to take their chances elsewhere. It doesn't necessarily make them any worse than those chosen. Many factors go into choice/preference of player and it is not strictly about ability. Tactics, player attitude, competition even sentiment all play a role.
Diego Costa rejected a call to play for Brazil (after featuring in 2 friendlies) and opted for Spain, even though he was born in Brazil.
Has the Brazilian NT collapsed? Not really.
Has Spain benefitted? Of course.
Any regrets? Hardly, either way.
I'm sure there are more similar examples.