It has been quite a revealing pre-season for the Nigerian sensation Kelechi Iheanacho after he made his debut with two goals in two matches for Man City. This has made his coach, Manuel Pellegrini brand him ‘a player for the future’.
Iheanacho’s path is one trodden in past times, yet one that has led very few to any significantly measurable success. Other African starlets – that is, many ‘next big things’ – have been snapped up by some major European clubs in the past, soon after excelling at global youth football level.
Examples include players such as Nii Odartey Lamptey to Anderlecht (and beyond); Daniel Opare to Real Madrid; John Obi Mikel to Manchester United and Chelsea; and Dominic Adiyiah to AC Milan, etc.
In the majority of these cases, such young players have – or almost have – come to ruin. Failing to break into the regular XIs of the clubs they join, their talents either freeze out on the sidelines, or are wasted by ill-advised loan deals or prolonged stints with their parent club’s reserves. Some, like Lamptey (once dubbed the ‘new Pele’ by the great Brazilian himself), succeed during the early hurdle(s), and then relapse spectacularly with detrimental career moves shortly thereafter.
Still, others face a different challenge. Consider John Obi Mikel, a fine attacking midfielder rated only second to a teenaged Lionel Messi at the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championships. Not long after joining Jose Mourinho’s Blues (following his exploits at the aforementioned tournament), Obi was reduced to a player barely recognisable from what he originally sprung forth as.
Needless to say, the 2013 Nations Cup winner hasn’t been the same since. Mikel has arguably retrogressed having failed to fulfil his once exciting potential.
These are just some of the odds stacked up against young Iheanacho, aside the likelihood of being suffocated by the hype that has swamped him ever since his rewarding adventures for Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets in the UAE a year ago at the FIFA U17 World Cup.
Man City already parades players like Yaya Toure, David Silva, and Samir Nasri among other world renowned stars. It would be prudent of him to move on a two year loan to a much smaller club side like Everton in order to gain much needed exposure and first team football. This will help build his confidence rather than him wallowing in the unending torment of staying on the bench of Man City.
There will be as many obstacles to scale as there are heights to be reached. Now is the time for his agent to show more prudence.
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This article was first published on 20th August 2014
obimartins
Martins Okafor is a Sports Writer for Connect Nigeria. He has been a sport buff for years, following stories and development in leagues and international competitions. His interest led him to writing stories – reporting on sporting events. He has superior interest in soccer, but knows much about other sports. He plans to have a blog and to advance in sport journalism. You can email him at: obimartins85 [at] gmail.com
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It has been quite a revealing pre-season for the Nigerian sensation Kelechi Iheanacho after he made his debut with two goals in two matches for Man City. This has made his coach, Manuel Pellegrini brand him ‘a player for the future’.
Iheanacho’s path is one trodden in past times, yet one that has led very few to any significantly measurable success. Other African starlets – that is, many ‘next big things’ – have been snapped up by some major European clubs in the past, soon after excelling at global youth football level.
Examples include players such as Nii Odartey Lamptey to Anderlecht (and beyond); Daniel Opare to Real Madrid; John Obi Mikel to Manchester United and Chelsea; and Dominic Adiyiah to AC Milan, etc.
In the majority of these cases, such young players have – or almost have – come to ruin. Failing to break into the regular XIs of the clubs they join, their talents either freeze out on the sidelines, or are wasted by ill-advised loan deals or prolonged stints with their parent club’s reserves. Some, like Lamptey (once dubbed the ‘new Pele’ by the great Brazilian himself), succeed during the early hurdle(s), and then relapse spectacularly with detrimental career moves shortly thereafter.
Still, others face a different challenge. Consider John Obi Mikel, a fine attacking midfielder rated only second to a teenaged Lionel Messi at the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championships. Not long after joining Jose Mourinho’s Blues (following his exploits at the aforementioned tournament), Obi was reduced to a player barely recognisable from what he originally sprung forth as.
Needless to say, the 2013 Nations Cup winner hasn’t been the same since. Mikel has arguably retrogressed having failed to fulfil his once exciting potential.
These are just some of the odds stacked up against young Iheanacho, aside the likelihood of being suffocated by the hype that has swamped him ever since his rewarding adventures for Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets in the UAE a year ago at the FIFA U17 World Cup.
Man City already parades players like Yaya Toure, David Silva, and Samir Nasri among other world renowned stars. It would be prudent of him to move on a two year loan to a much smaller club side like Everton in order to gain much needed exposure and first team football. This will help build his confidence rather than him wallowing in the unending torment of staying on the bench of Man City.
There will be as many obstacles to scale as there are heights to be reached. Now is the time for his agent to show more prudence.
