Another AFCOM has come and gone, and once again Nigeria is left behind. The Nigerian team has been benched at the conclusion of the AFCON qualifying tournament, watching Senegal walk off into the Qatar sunset for the 2022 World Cup.
Unfortunately, this is no new position for the Nigerian team to be in. They have only ever reached the great heights of the World Cup championship six times since 1994. The best instance of which got them to 9th place in 1994. Since then, it’s been a case of yo-yo-ing between the teens and mid-20th places, never reaching even the quarter-finals.
But maybe that can change. Nigeria has been given a glimmer of hope, and his name is Ademola Lookman. But who is this guy? And why has he got sports betting fans’ eyes all aglow? We take a look at the story around Ademola Lookman and his hopes for Nigerian football.
What’s happening?
Ademola Lookman is currently in a storm of controversy, having left – or “turned his back on” – Leicester City to play with the Super Eagles.
The London-born player has found himself in some bizarre tug-of-war between England and Nigeria, since he qualifies as Nigerian through his parents, and has made the choice to play for the Super Eagles.
It was a long process, at the end of which Lookman was confirmed to be making the switch out of any England team and into the Nigerian Super Eagles.
Lookman, for one, seems to be excited for the switch, telling the press that he “can’t wait” and is looking forward to representing Nigeria – a sentiment that we can guess means a lot to him.
What’s wrong with that?
Well, as you can imagine, a lot of English football fans, particularly Leicester fans, aren’t happy with his decision.
The feeling of betrayal dripping from the words throughout the various articles mentioning his name might have something to do with the fact that Lookman has built his career in England, having played for the Under-19, Under-20, and Under-21 level England teams. He also played a key role in his under-20 role in the World Cup 2017.
Since then, the 24-year-old has gone on to play with a range of English city teams, namely Charlton, Everton, and Fulham, before Leicester.
So, after a 5-year-long career in England, it could be seen as a slap in the face to some to turn tail and head into Nigeria.
Meanwhile in Nigeria…
The Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) has said what the rest of Nigeria is surely thinking: this could give the Super Eagles a real boost. Ademola Olajire, NFF director of communications, said that the NFF was very excited about the move and “delighted” that he could play for Nigeria.
And that’s no surprise. Lookman is considered a very valuable forward player, having flitted from English city team to English city team with a rising salary to reflect his rising popularity.
And in fact, this isn’t the first time Nigeria has pursued him, the first being in 2017, and then twice more in 2018, but he has turned them down. It seems 4th times’ the charm. What’s changed? We may never know.
But we can make some educated guesses for the future. Lookman has left all of these English teams with managers singing his praises, perhaps even begging him not to go. He’s a young player going from strength to strength. Maybe it’s not out of the question to imagine a World Cup 2026 that features the Super Eagles, with Lookman taking the lead onto the pitch.
