By Ade Ojeikere
I’m a very proud Nigerian. I celebrate positive things about Nigeria. You can then imagine how I felt when the deadline day transfer news last Friday was all about a Nigerian – Odion Ighalo – joining Manchester United on a six-month loan. The Red Devils have made their best catch for cheap. I don’t care what others before Ighalo did. Ighalo will compensate Red Devils for missing out on John Mikel Obi years ago. Forget the cheap talk of Remi Moses being the first Nigerian to play for Manchester United. Moses was more English than Nigerian. Ighalo na home boy, like they say in pidgin English.
Ighalo’s choice came as a surprise, given the fact that he was no longer a Nigeria international – a major prerogative for most big European sides. Aptly described as a child of destiny, good news have come to Ighalo like second nature. What shocks many is how he handles the blitz with such feats and equanimity. Not one of those big Nigeria international who are full of airs and couldn’t be bothered about the next person.
Not one of those stars loitering discotheques and spraying cash as if it has lost its value or blaring the volume of the musical sets in their cars under the guise of being one of the happening guys, Ighalo spends such times returning to the place where he was raised and improve on what he used to attain stardom. Ighalo enjoys training on the dusty Ajegunle ground, reminiscent of his days of yore. Not done, he supports academies with his cash for the good of the game. Indeed, Ighalo owns an academy.
One was surprised reading a signboard along Epe in Lagos, signifying Ighalo Soccer Academy located on a virgin land but would definitely produce soccer greats, knowing Ighalo’s penchant for excellence. He is not all about football as he also owns an orphanage that caters for the need of homeless kids – this shows his humanitarian side.
Ighalo is the seventh African to wear the colours of Manchester United. The world watched with a smile as he blushed all through his first interview for the club. Detailing his move from China to the promise land almost brought his fans to happy tears because we could all see the genuineness of his heart.
Ighalo is a fleet-footed striker who knows the diameter of the goalpost to bury the ball inside the net. He has been unlucky to play for small clubs in Europe, a fact which has stunted his rise to stardom. Ighalo’s performances with other clubs have only succeeded in giving him better, rather than mirroring along with other sensational scorers in Africa and Europe.
It is easy to dismiss Ighalo’s goal record playing for Watford in the Barclays English Premier League. Had he scored those goals for clubs such as Liverpool, Chelsea, Barcelona, Real Madrid, etc, his movement to Manchester United would have come with bigger transfer figures, not this demeaning loan agreement over six months.
Ighalo excelled at Watford in the Championship, scoring 17 goals to help the Hornets gain promotion. Many doubted his ability to reproduce same form at a huge stage like the Premier League, but the Ajegunle streetwise kid showed why he was ‘a small boy with a big God’ as he scored 15 goals in his debut season. One of his best games was against Chelsea where he scored twice in a 3-0 victory during the 2015/16 season and that proved his mentality for the big stage.
Interestingly, Ighalo never scored against Manchester United before he left England and fate must surely know that he was on his way back to Old Trafford to embrace his destiny as a Red Devils. Will Ighalo be a novice at Old Trafford? Never. Not with his being a Red devil from birth.
‘’These players are great players. You need someone in the middle that can keep the ball, hold the ball, because I’ve watched so many United games. So they need a physicality there up front to keep the ball, to give and to make some movement, which I believe, if everything goes well, I can add to the team,’’ Ighalo said.
‘’It was very dramatic,’’ the forward insisted. ‘’My agent called me the day before and said Man United. I would love to go. A few other clubs had shown interest, I said
please, just pick United, if it’s going to be possible.
‘’At 11pm in Shanghai, my agent called me to say United want to do the deal, so I woke up that night and started looking for a translator to go to the directors’ room and hit his door and all that. I didn’t sleep throughout that night, because it was going to end at 7am Shanghai time and the transfer window is going to close there. So from 11pm, there was paperwork, negotiating and all that, for the loan deal and all that, so we are talking and other teams are calling them, wanting me, but I told my agent this is what I want. He said you’re going to get a pay-cut to go to United. I said I don’t care. Make this deal happen. I want to go to United. I don’t care how much is the pay-cut, I know that, make it happen.’’
Ighalo has a date with destiny on his debut. He is condemned to do well, possibly score a goal or two. A hat-trick would just be the best way to start his Manchester United career, lest he is nailed on the cross by his critics, especially former players of the club, who have found it impossible to explain why the gaffer chose to recruit a striker from the Chinese league. What is in a name, some have asked? Ighalo played in England before heading for China. He scored goals with aplomb for Watford. Ighalo won the Barclays English Premier League player of the month’s diadem, ahead of many bigger players, while playing for Watford.
Ighalo’s talent cannot be wished away on the altar of coming from a less fancied league. Ighalo cannot be bullied off the ball by any defender. He also uses his brain, not brawn, whenever he is in scoring position. I look forward to watching Ighalo race to the corner post to celebrate with his traditional style of kneeling with raised hands, thanking God.
After the paperwork was finalised, an excited Ighalo called his mother to tell her the good news. ‘’She was happy, crying and all that,’’ Ighalo explained. ‘’This is your dream and all that and I’m happy for you. It was dramatic, I didn’t sleep through, I was very happy that finally we got the deal done.’’
Good to know that Ighalo cherishes his mother. He told mum first before accepting the offer. The story of Ighalo and his mother is a moving one. He toiled with his mother who sold wares on the streets, although he found time to play soccer, which has brought him fame and wealth, deservedly so.
News of Ighalo’s shock move to Old Trafford sparked parties on the streets of Nigeria, with many of his friends and family celebrating the transfer. ‘’It was crazy because, all over the news for the last few days, is about my deal to Man United. Even the street I grew up on, they are doing parties, celebrating Ighalo signing for United.
‘’They sent me the video, I was just laughing and happy, because many of them are supporting Man United and some of them are supporting some other teams in the Premier League. But they said, because of me, they are moving to United, because they have a very big fan-base in Nigeria. So I am happy about all this and they are rooting for United from now on, ‘’ Ighalo told Daily Mail.
And this…
The myth surrounding match results are funny, especially with Nigeria’s senior soccer sides. Whereas Golden Eaglets players have worn white jerseys to lift the U-17 World Cup, Super Eagles players are already defeated before games are played in which they wear all white jerseys laced with green.
A few times Eagles have worn white shirts and won. On such occasions, the narrative changes if the opposition is minnow. What started a sideline joke at match venues appear to have taken a ridiculous dimension with the news that Nigeria’s away shirt is now grey. please don’t wake me up from this terrible dream.
Where did they see grey? Many have said it can be found in our coat of arms. I thought colours chosen for such an exercise are the predominant ones. What won’t we see in Nigeria when it comes to football? I won’t be surprised if the players chose this colour.
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