How often do we see the entirety of Nigeria- or at least, almost the entirety of Nigeria celebrate and Jubilate with so much ecstasy, in recent times? Not just celebrate and jubilate, but more so, in a united manner, and for a united cause; a showing of a unanimous decision to pray for the best possible outcome; an unabashed display of optimism. A situation that calls for religious walls to collapse, tribal sentiments to be crushed, and ethno-centric bias destroyed. Not so often! Hardly! Rarely! Maybe once in a very ‘so-long-a-time’. Given the high polarization of this country along different lines; Ethno-Religious and Socio-cultural (amongst others), it is worth celebrating anyone or
anything, that gives Nigerians a reason to ‘sheath all swords’ of differences and for at least, once, think; ‘One people, one nation’. Such a person or
thing is like the sunshine on a cloudy day, like an oasis in parched ground or a spring of water in the extremes of the Sahara. But we are never devoid of such heroes; never left without a proof that God loves Nigerians and likes to see us smile; a witness that what unites us is more than what seeks to divide us. We are fortunate, and perhaps privileged to have had an architect of such a rare moment; Ahmed Musa, Yes, Ahmed Musa of the Super Eagles
Ahmed Musa: Hero with the Goals!
In the most unlikely of places; Russia, in the most unlikely of outfits: football kits, in the most unlikely fashion; running after a ball and kicking it into a net. Nigerians all over the world had a reason to scream and be happy for at least, ninety minutes. Talk about using the foolish things to dumbfound the wise. The ‘foolishness’ of 22 grown men running after a small leather ball to unite an entire country.
Though football is a team sport, often times, the highest recognition is given to the goal scorer(s). So while we do not overlook the efforts put in by every single player in the team, it is just ‘normal’ that the ‘final touch’ of the ball that made the net shake and the score board change be given most recognition. It is arguably, of most significance in a football match.
So let’s summarily introduce the Hero again; Ahmed Musa! Ahmed Musa, the man that had the joy of an entire nation at his feet; and without giving the room for disappointment, did cause the rapturous expression of such joy twice with two goals against Iceland, on the 22
nd of June 2018, in the Russia 2018 FIFA World cup. Nigeria eventually won they match though were eliminated at the group stages of the tournament. However, that day was memorable. Nigerians were united, had hope, and saw ‘something’ that actually had a uniting power for Nigeria.
Ahmed Musa became the first Nigerian to score more than once in a FIFA World Cup match after scoring twice against Argentina in the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Musa is also the first Nigerian to score in two FIFA World Cup Competitions, after scoring twice against Iceland in the group stage of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
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Other Interesting Facts about Ahmed Musa
Born in Jos, Musa started his footballing career at the GBS Football Academy in 2008. He was on loan at JUTH between the years 2008 and 2009. He then went to Kano pillars on loan between the years, 2009 and 2010. Musa proceeded to play for VVV-Venlo, a Dutch from 2010 to 2012 and then CSKA Moscow from 2012 to 2016. He eventually moved to England to play for Leicester city between 2016 and 2018, before returning to CSKA Moscow on loan in 2018. At the moment, Musa plies his trade at Al Nassr FC in Saudi Arabia. Musa has also played for Nigeria’s under 20, Nigeria’s Under 23 and the Senior National Team.
As a professional, Musa has had several honours to his name. Some of these include:
- The Russian Premier League
- The Russian cup
- The Russian super cup
- The African Youth Championship (Under 20) in 2011
- The WAFU Nations Cup in 2010
- The African Cup of Nation in 2013.
On an individual level, he was the Nigerian Premier League Top Scorer in the 2009/2010 season. The Russian cup Top scorer in the 2012/2013 season and was listed in the CAF Team of the Year in 2014.
http://en.m.wikipedia,org/wiki/ahmed_musa access 11/01/2019
http://www.transfermarkt.com>speiler accessed 11/01/2019
http://www.skysports.com>ahmed-musa accessed 11/01/2019.
Featured image source: fifa.com
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This article was first published on 23rd January 2019
jeremiah
Jeremiah is a scholar and a poet. He has a keen eye for studying the world and is passionate about people. He tweets at @jeremiahaluwong.
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