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Nwakali Wins LaLiga 2 Title With Huesca

Nwakali Wins LaLiga 2 Title With Huesca

Nigeria midfielder Kelechi Nwakali has won the Spanish Segunda Division title with SD Huesca, reports Completesports.com.

Huesca defeated Sporting Gijon 1-0 away on Monday night to win the title.

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Cristo Gonzalez netted the winning goal for the visitors in the 73rd minute after he was set up by Sergio Gomez.

Nwakali was on for 90 minutes in the game.

Huesca finished top of the table with 70 points from 42 games.


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COMMENTS

WORDPRESS: 73
  • Chairmanfemi 4 years ago

    From Rejection to Upliftment

    I can’t be overjoyed for you more than I am right now Kelechi…Chai! The Coach has been using him as a bit-part player since the restart and decided to try him on today to see who the real Nwakali is and he wasn’t disappointed. One would expect a Sub player like him to be removed later on in that decisive game but the Coach was utterly impressed with what he saw in Nwakali and left him on the pitch for the whole duration. Congratulations on winning the Spanish Segunda Division. Show the world what they’ve been missing next season my dear. Shine on

    • Pompei 4 years ago

      Your dear? Chai, Nigerians like good thing sha! So now that he is doing well, he has become “your dear”, abi? Lol! Na joke I dey ooo, Chairmanfemi. You are right. We are all extremely happy that this boy is finally realizing his immense potential, poco a poco. The boy has what it takes to be the next Mikel, with hard work. More grease, Nwakali!

  • Oakfield 4 years ago

    90 minutes for nwakali???? Bravo!!!!! You are getting there gradually. The past doesn’t really matter but the future is all we care for. God be with you my bro. It can only get better!!!

  • OYEDELE Josiah AYOTUNDE 4 years ago

    Big congrats Nwakali.

  • Omo9ja 4 years ago

    Congratulations to you Kelechi Nwakali. I am super excited for you. This is just the beginning by God’s grace. God bless Nigeria!!!

  • This guy nwakali is poorly marketed and promoted by who owns the job.very few video about him on YouTube for his new club.his little action and skills should be well marketed on YouTube

    • Greenturf 4 years ago

      Probably because he has played very few!haha…So nothing his marketer has to work with!

    • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

      How do you market a player who left his club to play for the national team knowing his visa was expiring in a month, couldnt return to his club for the rest of the season and missed an equivalent of 1 season of football….? Start showing clips of his U17 days 5 years ago (like some people here still rate players based on what they saw of them 7 years ago and not on current form and output)….?

      • Obidee 4 years ago

        Anyways they try sha as second division club bn promoted to La Liga.. Hope he keep fit and be calm in all his doing bcos he really some yrs of his football career for nothing. Kudos boys

        • Goal ⚽️ 4 years ago

          Big congrats to you kel!  We are expecting much from you ooh.

          I just hope the coach wouldn’t turn him to a DM or CM because I saw the lineup and he was on the right side of the midfield.

          We currently need a good attacking midfielder in the Super Eagles only  .

          • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

            Dont stress any further…Kelechi hardly crossed into Gijon’s half the whole match. He jus sidon kpichikom for that No 4 position as Mikel used to do for Chelsea those days. He did perform well in the position though.
            A DM, yes…a CM occasionally…..an AM….I really doubt it. We might just have to make do with seeing him groomed as a ‘water-carrier’ for the rest of his career just like Mikel.

      • Chairmanfemi 4 years ago

        Drey, you’re just one sad clown that roams about a topic for years as women does. Get behind the lad Nwakali. When he gets a call up, go and hang yourself. If he doesn’t, all still good. He keeps on shining.

        Talking like you have the Final say every now and then…Crazy

        • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

          Hahahahaha…I can see you are frustrated….Nothing fruastrates charlatans and sycophants better that the truth…LMAO

          When emptyheads have no logical answer to a sound pose they turn to mudslinging. You roam here on CSN as much as I do…so that makes 2 sad clowns. But obviously you are the “sadder” of the two….LOLz. By the way, decency has still not told you to apologize for that glaring blatant lie you told against me yesterday due to your inability to read properly…LMAO. Calling someone a lair for what he never ever said is much worse than crazy….If only you had a little shame, you wouldnt even be forcing your face here for a while after that massive goof….LMAO.

          If my answer to @Iyke is false, why not counter it with a sounder judgement. “….Get behind the lad Nwakali…” thats supposed to be directed at people like you who despite having not watched some of these youngsters play in years still ruin their careers by deceiving them to be superstars who have arrived, just based on the football you saw them play 5-7 years ago as little boys in the U17s. It is that attitude that is almost drowning them and inhibiting the fulfillment if their potentials when instead of candid nuggets to help them not rest on their oases, you worship them as tin-gods and call them names of legends.

          When he and the rest who shone at cadet level, raise their games to the top level worthy of senior international football, they will sure get their call-ups, and we (including Me) will all celebrate it…..till then you can continue biting trees all around the place. If you dont see their names in the next eagles list go and hang yourself (and better prepare to do so because its clear they still wont make it in there yet)….but hype them all you want FACT remains FACT, TRUTH remains TRUTH and REALITY remains REALITY….no matter how hard you try to bend it….those kids MUST WORK HARDER AND PLAY AT A HIGHER LEVEL THAN THOSE IN THE SE ATM to get a callup….the SE is not a Rehabilitation Centre…..Finis and Klaar…!!!

  • Jones 4 years ago

    ‘Go and hang yourself’ very unnecessary

    • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

      Hahahaha…..he is still frustrated from disgracing himself yesterday in his attempt to score a point against Dr.Drey….LMAO

  • @Drey i watch that game nwakali played very well. He was playing acording to the instruction. Let me tell you what you dont know today.nwakali is better than ndidi. Iwobi. Azeez. Ndidi is not a natural mildfielder he is a defender he can play in the mildfied for his club not for super eagles. If i were to be super eagles coach today i will played ndidi in the defence. Etebo. Aribo. Nwakali in my mildfield.

    • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

      Hahahaha…..dem don come again o…LMAO. Nwakali is better than Ndidi….please tell me more…LMAO. I just hope you would not come back here after 6 months to deny you ever said this….the same way those who many months ago said “Isaac Success was FAR BETTER than Ighalo, Musa Mohammed was FAR BETTER than Ola Aina and Esiti FAR BETTER than Ndidi” recently denied they NEVER said so.

      I watched the game too FYI….and I duly acknowledged last night that Nwakali was doing well. I am also aware that he was also playing to instruction and that does not in anyway negate the fact that he was played as a CDM and not an AM and will most likely remain in that position since he has done well in it thus far unless he probably changes club or the guys playing AM are not available. That movie is one we have all watched before with Mikel starring in it and we all saw how he permanently became a CDM for chelsea all his career.

      As for your Nwakali is better than Ndidi and Iwobi submission, I will believe it the day Nwakali is rated at the BEST DM IN THE TOP FIVE LEAGUES IN EUROPE or the day he has a hand (directly or indirectly) in goals score by the SE for 10 games consecutively. Till then, pray for him to nail a 1st team shirt at Huesca 1st when they start rubbing shoulders with the big boys in the la liga, before saying he is better than people who have played over a century of matches in a top league like EPL and even competed continentally.

      • JimmyBall 4 years ago

        Kelechi Nwakali will be better when fully ready in fitness and after the next LA Liga season than all we have in midfield now… Both Mikel or anyone past and present… His route has just been a bit bumpy that’s all… We have not had an all rounder in midfield like that for a long time…

        • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

          Yea..K. Nwakali will be better..I pray so. Just as Ndidi too will become better, Iwobi too will become better, Aribo too will become better, Azubike too will become better, Ejaria too will become better, Etebo too will become better and so on and so forth….but to claim someone whose best days so far in his career were what we saw of him 5yrs ago at U17 level is Better than people who have competed even in Europe is simply fantasy.
          As I said before your claims will be justified the day Nwakali is rated as highly as Ndidi IN THE TOP FIVE LEAGUES IN EUROPE or the day he has a hand (directly or indirectly) in goals scored by the SE for 10 games consecutively like Iwobi or The day he lasts 10 seasons in a top club and wins as much as Mikel.
          Abi nor be the same Arsenal wey Iwobi succeed naim dem from purse the Nwakali like goat wey nor get owner…canceling his contract with 3 yrs remaining and dashing him out for free??? Issokay. Infact Nwakali is the greatest Nigerian midfielder of all time….! Its this same illogical “fans hype” that nearly buried the guy’s career while at Porto. The kid has just played his 1st 90 mins of league football in 18 months (barring injuries) and he has suddenly become better than people who made centuries of apperances at the highest levels of club football. I just hope fans will not bury this guy’s career before its time.

          https://www.owngoalnigeria.com/2020/01/24/nigerian-press-stalled-the-career-of-kelechi-nwakali-portuguese-journalist/

  • Pompei 4 years ago

    Mikel = water carrier? Dr Drey, that’s a bit harsh na. Granted, Mikel did not fulfil the enormous expectations that arose from his commanding performances in his early days. The metamorphosis from exciting AM to backwards and sideways passing, shot shy, totally risk-averse, kpichikom-sitting DM had many Nigerians singing the blues. However, his trophy cabinet seems to justify his career decisions. And he did ok with Nigeria. His performances and average goals per game for Nigeria make him look like a completely different player from what we saw at Chelsea. Not to mention how he almost single-handedly bailed Nigeria out of a financial mess at the Rio Olympics. I’ve watched a few interviews from fellow Olympic team players, and they all spoke of him in glowing terms, based on his impact both on and off the pitch. A thoroughbred professional is what he is. His professionalism made him look less glamorous on the pitch, especially for his clubs, but also made him quite valuable to his coaches.

    • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

      Dont get things twisted. The term “water carrier” in football refers to the man with uncanny vision who links the defense to the midfield and drives the team from just outside his own 18 yrd box. Makelele was the “water carrier” for chelsea b4 Mikel arrived, Busquets has been the “water carrier” for Barcelona for over a decade now, Micheal Carrick was the “water carrier” for Man U before retirement. Nwakali played as the “water carrier” for Huesca last night and interpreted the role very well.

      The term “water carrier” was and is not a derogatory term and neither did i use it as such.

      • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

        Ahaaaaaa…now I understand the hue and cry from left right centre….Much Ado About “Water Carrier”…..LMAO

        • Pompei 4 years ago

          Dr. Drey, your definition of WATER CARRIER sounds more like SWEEPER, a role Franz Beckenbauer popularized.
          The popular non-football meaning of the term “water carrier” (as far as I know) is an unproductive team member. The team member who is just there to complete the numbers. The team member who does the dirty, non-glamorous, but necessary work for the team. In some U.S sports such as baseball, you have the team member who’s job it is to supply water to the main players to keep them hydrated. The WATER BOY.
          So, the term water carrier is actually somewhat derogatory, in a tongue in cheek way. In football, it appears to have been started by Eric Cantona who gave Didier Deschamps the nickname WATER CARRIER, because he did the dirty, unglamorous work in the midfield for the team. The term water carrier does not apply to Mikel’s type of play. Mikel was not a midfield enforcer/brute force ball winner like that. He was more of a deep lying playmaker, a REGISTA.

          • Lord AMO 4 years ago

            @Pompei, the term water carrier is typically reserved for defensive midfielders whose main job is to retrieve the ball and get it to thos who do dangerous things with it. It comes with both a positive and negative connotation. Positive in that the water carrier is a ball winner and also keeps the flow of the team moving without dawdling on the ball too much. Negative in that it implies the player is not overly risky or necessarily involved at the business end of the pitch. Yes Mikel was a water carrier at chelsea, as was Makelele as Dr Drey mentioned earlier. Others that fit that description are Kante, perhaps Busquets and even as we are starting to see, Wilfred Ndidi.

            The flip side of a water carrier is your box-to-box midfielder. He’s not quite the creative midfielder but he does more than just pass it off to the creatives. A great example is Steven Gerrard. We hope Ari-ball is one such player too. I hope that clarifies what that term is meant to describe.

            Now Franz Beckenbauer was almost just a position to himself. He was quite unique and his play basically created a new position on the field that sadly is no longer seen in modern football. The closest to that style in my opinion is David Luiz but he doesn’t come anywhere close to the overall quality and awareness of the Kaiser! Virgil van Diyk possesses a small fraction of that ball playing ability but e no reach. Some of the recent Dutch centerbacks also have it in them but again Kaiser is basically a class of his own.

          • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

            “…Dr. Drey, your definition of WATER CARRIER sounds more like SWEEPER, a role Franz Beckenbauer popularized….”

            I’m sorry, my definition was nowhere similar to your statement above. As I said earlier, my use of the term was not in a derogatory way. My examples of Makelele, Carrick and Busquests speaks volume of what I meant. None of them were brutish, just like mikel, even didier deschamps was not a brute in his playing days, they were players who brought plenty on intelligence into the art of ball winning, they simply did their jobs and let the others do theirs….they were not a Cheik Tiote nor a Tomas Gravensen or a Roy Keane. Call it Water-carrier, call it Regista, call it Deep lying playmaker, call it Holding midfielder…they all refer to the same role. @ Lord Amo has shed light on it already.

            wwwDOTwhitehouseaddressDOTblogspotDOTcom/2012/07/why-water-carrier-is-essential-for.html||
            wwwDOTtelegraphDOTcoDOTuk/football/2017/02/10/premier-league-awash-new-kind-midfielder-water-carriers-20/
            wwwDOTsportskeedaDOTcom/football/world-class-water-carriers-the-importance-of-holding-midfielders

            Beckenbeuer was a unique type of footballer with a unique style of play that has not been seen in football ever since…being a sweeper was just one of the many components of his style…he combined the attributes of a sweeper to that of a ball playing defender and playmaker…he was a Pique+Busquets+Xavi all rolled in one.

  • GLORY 4 years ago

    What is all these good for nothing talk that Kelechi is better than this, better than that. Why won’t you guys just let this poor lad be? How myopic/ wicked,to keep putting undue pressure on him again n again? especially now that he is trying to rebuild his almost dead career. Please please please you guys should take your eyes away from him and let him focus. Kelechi Nwakali don’t need all of these unnecessary hype or comparison to already established stars. His time will definitely come and these good for nothing hype cannot force his time to be now.

    • JimmyBall 4 years ago

      … Kelechi Nwakali is the one Nigerians are waiting for to continue from where Austin Okocha stopped. His career only suffered because he went to Arsenal instead of a team like in Spain or Portugal where work permit and appearances for national team is not a precondition… In two years he will wear our No. 10 period…

      • Adisboy 4 years ago

        You guys get Kelechi Nwakali’s position twisted. He would never be Okocha as they do not play the same position even in U17. He is more like a deep-lying playmaker like Pirlo. And please less pressure on the lad, his time will come. Let’s all be patient.

        • Mercy 4 years ago

          Present day football requires any player that will play no 10 must be very quick, fast thinking, able to play one two touches by connect with other forward players, and must also have eyes for goals. Nwakali is more like xabi Alonso, pirlo, Haruna lukman a deep lying playmaker.

      • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

        Excuses upon excuses…..you forgot he was loaned to FC Porto, was moved to the B team and yet wasnt even a regular starter for Porto B. Instead of hyping him unnecessarily, pray for him to be able to get his career back on track and for the first time in his professional career nail a confirmed starting shirt in a club. Ndidi that most of you claim he is better than won 2 awards in the Belgian top division in his 1st full season in Europe he tied down a 1st team shirt immediately and walked straight into LCFC starting 11 too and they never missed Ngolo Kante. He has consistently being amongst the top DM in the EPL for 3 seasons running. Consistency is the name of the game. Nigerians are not waiting for anybody to become anybody….In two years, all things being equal, Iwobi will be improved, Aribo will be improved, Ejaria will be improved, Ndidi will be improved, Etebo will be improved, Ebere Eze (if he gives himself sense and switches to Nigeria) will be improved, Azubike Okechukwu will be improved, other midfielders will emerge too…..stop deceiving Nwakali that Nigerians are waiting for him….nobody is waiting for anybody…..If you like him so much, tell him the truth to raise his game and never stop working hard. It is absolutely ridiculous to be claiming someone who has only been playing B team and 2nd division all his career is better than all the established stars we have in the SE who have competed at the highest level and even in Europe…..nobody is waiting for anybody. Every one should keep their focus, keep working hard and never get carried away.

  • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

    “…

  • We never heard of PEPE until ARSENAL signed him.

    We never heard of ZIYECH until he started doing exploit at AJAX.

    MAHREZ was an unknown name until he shone at LECEISTER.

    ONANA was not hyped when he was at BARCA ACADEMY.

    SALAH came to CHELSEA & was not hyped, he went for further experience at ROMA & did exploit b4 finally coming to rape EPL.

    As good as HAKIMI is, MOROCCO dont make noise about this lad, they allow him to blossom.

    I never heard of KOULIBALLY until MAN.U, MADRID & other top guns were qeueing for his signature.

    There’s one KISSIE, KEITA, AUBA, MANE, GUEYE, ADAMA TRAORE, PARTEY that are tearing EUROPE apart.
    They were not hyped by their fans but top clubs went for them b4 we start hearing of them.

    Let’s stop all this unnecessary hype & allow our upcoming lads to put their heads down.

    How many of them are in big clubs (i.e; UCL, UEC, SUPER CUP winning clubs).
    Just average team players & we’re here hyping & killing their career thinking we’re doing them good.

    PLS LET’S STOP IT…

    • Collins id 4 years ago

      I am a big fan of nwakali, but to be honest the guy havnt done good for himself in the past few years after the u17 wcup, they failed to qualify for u20 wcup and there after he was with azubuike in the lasy u23 afcon he failed there too, he wasnt solid enough, though the strikers didnt help matters but it was thesame situation when etebo played along side azubuike in 2015 u23 afcon, etebo single handedly gave us the truphy and there after performed very well in rio olympics. Thats the way it is, if you failed in u20 and u23 then i cant be so meopic by waiting for you in eagles, apearantly i have a similar player to you already,(ejiara) he is more skill full and more faster than you, he also posesses more vision than you do; he his closer to pirlo than you are by now. So my guy kele i will be watching you with one eye for now until you give me new reasons to open the second eye. Be focus and do ur best at huesca for now we have ejiara knocking and azubuike too, etebo azeez and onazi still have hopes too.

    • greenturf 4 years ago

      What makes you think this players weren’t hyped in their country?I doubt our African neighbours knows one unknown footballer by name Kelechi Nwakali is getting hyped in Nigeria as well.

  • Pompei 4 years ago

    Lord Amo, sorry for my late response. As you opined, at Chelsea Mikel wins the ball and starts looking to give it to Lampard, Ballack, or other supposedly more creative attacking midfielders and forwards. However, we all knew that Mikel could be just as creative if given the chance. I personally hated to see such a creative soul being forced to sit kpichikom in front of the JT led back four. Having Mikel play the holding role was like using a plastic bucket in the same manner as you would use a metal bucket. Both can do the job of a bucket. However, one is more delicate! Mikel was more delicate compared to the harder, more robust tackling DMs that played in that role. It was never his natural position. He just did what he had to do as a professional.
    In sharp contrast, in the Nigeria jersey, Mikel became the go-to man, the man everybody was looking for to create and make the final pass. The team metronome, dictating play and controlling the midfield.
    So, I don’t think the water carrier term defines Mikel’s career. Even in a DM role, Mikel had that extra level of creativity that for me excludes him from the water carrier category.

  • Pompei 4 years ago

    “they were not a Cheik Tiote nor a Tomas Gravensen or a Roy Keane. Call it Water-carrier, call it Regista, call it Deep lying playmaker, call it Holding midfielder…they all refer to the same role.”

    Hmmm, interesting. What’s up, Doc? Are you implying that Andrea Pirlo, one of the greatest registas to play the game, was a water carrier?

    Pirlo, like Mikel, played in the holding role. But he was the CREATOR IN CHIEF in the midfield at AC Milan, at Juventus, and for the Italian national team. So the regista role played by Pirlo is not the same as the water carrier role.
    Most would agree that Pirlo and Mikel are similar type players.
    If Pirlo does not fit the water carrier definition (which he most certainly DOES NOT), neither does Mikel.

    • JimmyBall 4 years ago

      … Kelechi Nwakali has arrived to bail SE out of all our pretentious present-day midfielders. Ndidi this… Ndidi…that, that guy gave away a tonne of fouls in ANC and failed woefully.

      • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

        Nwakali couldnt even bail out his age-mates at U20 and U23 level….it is SE he has arrived to bail out..LMAO…let him bailout himself from not having a permanent starting shirt in all his clubs 1st before bailing out the SE.

        • greenturf 4 years ago

          Absolutely @Drey.Nwakali with all the hype failed on two occasions to inspire the Nigeria under 20 and under 23’s respectively to qualify for the global showpiece.

          I haven’t got a problem with the lad but we expected so much from him after a huge performance in Chile five years ago.By now we thought he would be one of the best there’s in world football going by his potentials and that of his older sibling,unfortunately both have struggled so much to our disbelief!

          However,it’s not the end of the road for Kelechi Nwakali.

          Apparently he’s on the right path.

          Frankly,i wish him well and hope he’s able to resuscitate his career in the Spanish topflight.I think we should be patient and hope he gets his form back and even better,until then we may start making comparisons.

          • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

            My brother, its these useless hypes that is killing the careers of both brothers o…in addition to an inept and incompetent elder brother of manager that they have. Imagine both brothers still do not have a settled career up till now after 5-7 years if U17 football and were both sacked under similar circumstances from their clubs (late return after leave of absence). When you start feeling in your head that you have arrived, because fans are hailing you as the next this or the next that, that is when you will start misbehaving and raising shoulders to your superiors and feeling you are indispensable. I’ve never hear Arsenal sack a youth player with 3 years left on his contract, K.Nwakali’s case would be my first….forumites can update me if they know of any other. Your attitude determines your altitute. U17 is not the peak of football, it is the starting point….hundreds of players have shone at U17 and fallen by the wayside, We’ve had far more talented players than these 2 brothers in our youth teams tht failed to reach the top…talent is never enough. It is completely ludicrous to be claiming someone who has only been playing B team and 2 division football in the last 5 years is better than people who are winning stuff and competing at the highest level. Its like saying that kid who is good with arithmetic in primary is school better than those solving differential calculus in College…LMAO. Kelechi even just made his 1st start at Huesca since joining the club this year and already he is better than Mikel….LMAO…honestly some things are really good for comedy.

    • greenturf 4 years ago

      Pirlo played the number 10 role at club and international levels respectively.

      However,Mikel only played similar role at international levels most times but featured prominently as a defensive midfielder for Chelsea.

    • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

      Andrea Pirlo was not a “career Regista”. Young Andrea Pirlo was a central midfielder, he simply brought his Central midfield play-making attributes to bear on his role as a regista as he began to age and take a more withdrawn position on the pitch and has such became the biggest if not the greatest exponent of the role. Does Sergio Busquets fit the “water-carrier” role…yes. Does Micheal Carrick fit the “water carrier” role….yes. Does Claude Makelele whom Mikel replaced at chelsea (thereby earning the nickname Mikelele from chelsea fans as a result) fit the “water carrier” role….yes. As much as these guys fit that role then Mikel does. Mikel was never the CREATOR-IN-CHIEF for chelsea (so its quite off the mark to compare him with Pirlo), same way we cannot compare Carrick to Pirlo just because he was sometimes referred to by the english press as the British Regista. And I repeat…call it Deep lying playmaker, call it Holding midfielder…they all refer to (or are rather variants of) the same role. The 3 links I shared above expatiate on these things. I rest my case

      • Pompei 4 years ago

        The Nigeria Mikel was comparable to Pirlo. If he could score from freekicks, he would have been even closer to Pirlo. The Chelsea Mikel was a center midfielder that found himself in a DM role, and he fulfilled it to the best of his ability as a professional. A creative player playing to his coach’s instructions. You can put a lion on a leash. That will never make it a dog. I rest my portmanteau.

        • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

          Oga Pompei…this ya argument is not leading you any where o. Let mikel be Pele and Ronaldo combined….he never for once played as a CM or AM in a chelsea shirt…he was a DM and played as the “water-carrier” all through his decade long stay at chelsea under all the coaches at chelsea….and that’s a FACT…..everybody who knew Mikel at chelsea knew him as a DM . We dont want to know if he could score freekicks from the stadium’s car park or give through passes from his own goal post to the other goal post blind folded. Whether he was playing to introductions or he was playing to destruction….For chelsea he was a DM…QED

          It was you who said I was wrong to describe a “water-carrier” in football terms as “…the man with uncanny vision who links defense to the midfield and drives the team from just outside his own 18 yrd box…”, it was same you who still said “…at Chelsea Mikel wins the ball and starts looking to give it to Lampard, Ballack, or other supposedly more creative attacking midfielders and forwards…I personally hated to see such a creative soul being forced to sit kpichikom in front of the JT led back four” and yet Mikel was not a “water carrier” at chelsea, he was not a DM at chelsea. You are beginning to inadvertently argue with yourself.

          Come on Brother…!!! There are sweeter stuff we can exchange ideas about…not stuff that are unarguable.

          • Pompei 4 years ago

            Dr Drey, it’s alright. Mikel carried water at Chelsea. If you like, you can also say he carried ogogoro and akpeteshie. Fine. But in the green white green of Nigeria, he was the creative man in the middle. So, my argument remains that Mikel’s career is not defined by the “water carrier” term. If Lampard smokes something tomorrow and asks Azpilicueta to play as a right winger, Azpilicueta will play na. He is a professional. He has to execute his coach’s instructions to the best of his ability. That is what happened to Mikel at Chelsea. The real Mikel is the person that Iniesta saw at the 2013 Confed cup, and labeled the BEST MIDFIELDER HE HAS EVER SEEN. The way Mikel was toying with a Spanish midfield comprising of Iniesta, Xavi and Busquets. My good doctor, that is by no means a water carrier performance! He may have been forced to play the role at Chelsea, granted. But that is not his game. Period!

          • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

            Hahahahahaha @Pompei…person wey climb mango tree wey near prison wall to pluck mango, come fall inside the prison yard, e don go prison come back be that o. If you like use laptop bag carry ludo…na ludo you still carry, nor b laptop. If Azpilicueta “play to instructions” from the 1st day e enter chelsea for 10 years as a Winger under 6 coaches, posterity will remember him as Chelsea winger. Whether na real thierry henry or the fake one, Henry “played to Wenger’s instructions” to become Arsenal’s greatest striker of all times despite originally being a winger….whether na real Aubameyang or Unreal one Pierre Emerick “played to Klopp’s instructions” to become a top class Striker for Dortmund despite originally being a winger and still remains a top striker till today. Our own finidi ‘finito’, whether na the real one or the one wey dem fabricate for owode onirin “played to Westerhoff’s instructions” and became the best right winger in the world for the rest of his career and the SE despite originally being a central midfielder and we still remember him today as Ex-SE winger. I get am before nor be property. Mikel was a DM and played the “water carrier” role in footballing terms for chelsea FC and is today remembered as ex-chelsea defensive midfielder….if e like make he be Zinedine Ronaldinho for other clubs.
            Tenant wey owe landlord nor dey carry curry cook stew…I don waka.

  • JimmyBall 4 years ago

    … @Drey, Nwakali has proven himself always, in the failed olympic qualifier he scored a beautiful free kick against Zambia which shows he still got it even though not 100% fit in a team Imama Amapakabo selected out of taking bribe, a team without talent as is his usual trademark in all the campaigns he failed to qualify Nigeria. One tree cannot make a forest… I hear someone said he couldn’t lift his U-20 mates to qualify for Afcon U-20… they won first leg against Sudan away and NFF politics took the return leg to Lagos in rainy season on an artificial turf… it rained heavy in Lagos on matchday and even during the match… We led at one time 3 – 1 but the pitch being soggy it was clear what was being played on that pitch was a game of luck at best… Winning 4-3 could not save them due to away goals rule… Any African youngster who joins a premiership team from a youth tournament will have his Career stalled because of the restrictions on mostly non-EU players… that’s what Nwakali suffered and even his brother as well as Onyekuru, and Kayode Olanranwaju who were bought by Man City… One monkey said he could not make it at Porto, what about Musa Yahaya who we all know was as good as Nwakali? It’s easy to criticize these boys without a shred of what they face and the prejudice still in European clubs most that looking from the outside-in you Wil never know… Kelechi Nwakali? Now that’s a real midfielder… I played football to a high level and to me Ndidi is not a traditional Nigerian midfielder… he can compete in England where they just run like goats and tackle but in Spain or Italy Ndidi will be eaten Clean… Look at what that young Algerian in Italian league did to them at nations cup…

    • JimmyBall 4 years ago

      … @Drey. You have a very negative mindset about young players, you are attributing his Arsenal debacle to I discipline… Your facts are twisted and you come on this forum to write as if you are William Shakespare of Nigeria football… A guy like you have never even kicked orange before… You don’t even know football.

      • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

        Ok..you that is Cyprian ekwensi of Nigerian football, tell us why Arsenal canceled the contract of the “starboy who is better than all the current SE midfielder and Mikel put together” whom they paid almost $3.5m for, with 3 years left and let him go for a free…? You that has facts that are not twisted and claim you played to the highest level yet we nor see your logo anywhere tell us if going AWOL from your club and reporting late after leave of absence is not an act of Indiscipline.

        Yes i gree, i dont know football…infact i never even see football before but stop being emotional and defensive, I dont have a negative mindset about young players, but I’m not so silly to be hyping players who have not even seen anything in football as my personal lord and saviour. If hyping youth players whose careers are stagnating is what you that has even played in “UEFA Champions League” calls negative mindset, then its your headache. Deal with it…! I cant keep praising a kid whose report card his not showing progress.

    • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

      Hahahahaha…excuses upon excuses….he wasnt 100% fit…yet he started and played in all 3 matches…he wasnt 100% fit, yet he could play the freekick on target but couldn’t supply forward passes to our strikers or create assists as the creative midfielder in the team…… I even thought you will tell us he made several through passes and assists. It was in the same Rainy season and artificial turf that sudan played and scored not 1 not 2 not 3…..4 goals against us to knock us out of AFCON qualification. Continue giving us excuses…maybe its not in the same Europe “with their prejudice” that youngsters like Nacho, Chukwueze, Ndidi, Ejuke, Kalu, Osimhen etc are all blossoming. Ndidi can compete in only England because they run like goats…do they run like goats in Belgium too where he won 2 awards in his 1st full season…??? Why has starboy Nwakali not won any awards in all the clbs/leagues he has played in so far…? Were the U20s and U23s too running like goats where Nwakali could not bail them out, but is the one that will bail-out all the midfielders in the SE…??? Oga we all watched the U23 AFCON, there was no link between the midfield where nwakali was supposed to be the boss and the attack…he was one of the biggest flops and disappointments in that tournament after all the hype.
      Continue cooking up excuses…dont advise your starboy to strive harder, stay humble and focus on resurrecting his career. You really played football to the highest level…LMAO

      • JimmyBall 4 years ago

        …@Drey, you always like to have the last word… whatever you have written does not take away the fact that Ismaël Bennacer of Algeria, only 21 years at the time, decimated all our midfielders in the last Nations Cup… he created so much panic in our midfield that super Ndidi became non-existent in that game… poor fellow Ndidi! Very rigid mechanical pretentious midfielder… let him try at right full back for SE jare!

        • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

          So its your Nwakali who was decimated by Sudan U20 and pocketed by U23 teams of Cotediviore and Southafrica at U23 AFCON that is better than all our midfielders combined…LMAO….At least our Ndidi was dominated by an AFCON champion and a top player….your own starboy was messed up by unknown quantites from sudan and southafrica…LMAO. He is 21 yrs like Bennacer but he is still jumping from one B team to the other, from one 2nd division to the other whereas his mate Bennacer is already a regular starter for AC Milan in the serie A. Tell him to earn a starting shirt at Huesca 1st before dreaming of playing alongside players who have played against the best players and coaches in the world in the EPL. When he starts winning awards or starts to top the charts for tackles or passes or assists made in a top 5 league in Europe,we will start believing he is better than his seniors.
          I hope you’ve seen the goal Aribo scored last night…..that na sabi player…e nor need make noise…..sit down there and be waiting for 2 years for Nwakali. Aribo don dey nail down No 10 jersey for SE……LMAO.
          Meanwhile, We are still waiting for you to tell us why he was booted out of Arsenal since you have facts that are not twisted, you wey play at the highest level….LMAO.

          • JimmyBall 4 years ago

            U r paid journalist…

          • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

            Hahahaha….na honest work…! You way play football to highest level but you nor know say going AWOL from your club and reporting late after leave of absence na act on Indiscipline…how market…?

  • Collins id 4 years ago

    Mikel was never a good 10. He was over rated becos of u20 average performance, a number 10 that cannot shoot the ball, doesn’t impose any danger from dead balls, he was very lucky morihno was patient with him to making him a water career, that later extended his career to the level he reached. He was initially giving the role in the first few games but he couldn’t even trapped the ball. No 10 nor be beans and as far as I am concerned Mikel was never up to the task, all my life I supported Mikel with hope and Faith there wasn’t security at all. His many years with the eagles playing no 10 was the worst error in Nigerian football history. Failing to qualify for 3 afcon, failed to bit Ghana to 10 man at afcon 2008. Failing 2006 and 2008 against ivory coast, failed against Ghana and Egypt again in 2010. His best time with eagles was 2013 where keshi was courageous enough to qualify without him and when he joined he was humbled to his dm/cm where morihno had already modified him for, assisted by the then inform onazi, keshi opted for a better 10 in the person of Sunday mba and we all know the deference, mba moves with ball and shoots very well imposes threats and scored wonderful goals when needed that is the characteristics of number 10. Iwobi arrival delivered me from Mikel fake number 10 scam , full of side passes and back passes, blunders that Chelsea couldn’t. Even he was once rated by lampard and John Terry as the poorest player in Chelsea. Playing against wick teams his number 10 becomes manageable against big team’s how far? Iwobi is the only number 10 I have seen since okocha retirement with 8 goals already and numerous assists. I will rank Mikel as the best Nigeria dm after holiseh retirement, that was the role he played for both champions league final and afcon final that his where he should be remembered for. As for number 10 e nor near am at all.

  • Lord AMO 4 years ago

    Meanwhile West Brom and Ajayi are embroiled in their own promotion battle as they take on QPR.  A win would see them promoted.  They went down 1-0 but have battled fiercely to tie it up just before halftime.  Its a great watch right now

    • Lord AMO 4 years ago

      its now 2-1 to west brom. They have one foot in the prem.

      • Lord AMO 4 years ago

        2-2 now with Eze the goal scorer for QPR. Other results are currently in West Brom’s favor.

        • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

          Callum Robinson had chance to make it 3-1 and kill off the game for wesbrom and decided to make the game more interesting by throwing it away. But make Eze and Osayi take am easy with Ajayi their naija broda o. Both of them are being courted by EPL clubs already and will most likely play in the EPL next season, make dem please nor pour salt for Semi’s EPL ambitions.

          • Lord AMO 4 years ago

            At the point of that miss I thought it might come back to haunt them. One thing they’ll definitely need next season are better quality front players. Did you see the way Slavan Bilic was chatting with Eze at the end of the game? who knows

          • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

            To survive in the premiership, they will be need better quality players all over the pitch, not just at the front. EPL no be moonlight tales.

        • Chairmanfemi 4 years ago

          Ebere Eze the goal scorer again for QPR

        • Lord AMO 4 years ago

          It’s all on a knifes edge regarding the final automatic promotion spot now. Three teams are involved and are separated by just two points. West Brom (82), Brentford (81) and fulham (80). All their matches are now tied with about 10 minutes of normal time left. Really nerve wracking finish to this last day of league one

    • Chairmanfemi 4 years ago

      The good news is Fulham is presently drawing with Balogun’s Wigan and Brentford are loosing to relegated Barnsley. If the game ends this way, West Brom are through even with a draw

      • Lord AMO 4 years ago

        Brentford have tied it up

        • Lord AMO 4 years ago

          and now they’re losing. Brentford that is. Its between fulham and west brom now. Injury time!

  • Dr Banks 4 years ago

    It’s 2-2 now, Eberechi Eze breaking the heart of Ajayi, but Brentford is also still 1-1 draw and one point below Westbrom with 3 mins to the end. Lets keep the hope alive

    • Mercy 4 years ago

      As it is right now WBA has gotten promotion to the Epl. Brentford were losing 2-1 and Fulham cannot qualify ahead of WBA even if WBA loses because of superior goal difference.

  • Dr Banks 4 years ago

    Barnsley 2-1 Brentford….interesting and Westbrom’s Ajayi is officially in EPL next season, congratulations 

  • Lord AMO 4 years ago

    West Bromich Albion are back in the premier league! Chelsea wetin do una?

  • Dr Banks 4 years ago

    Congrats to Ajayi who played full 90 mins for WB, EPL in the bag. However Balogun’s Wigan may still be relegated due to the 12 points deduction from their total points due to the fact that they were placed on Administration earlier this month. I really felt for him and other players in that team, they tried their best churning out good results but the board let them down

    • Dr. Drey 4 years ago

      I read they have appealed the verdict…..lets pray somehow they get a reduced sentence. They really deserved to remain in the Championship based on their form since Balogun joined them in January. Just two more points they are in need of to remain there.

  • Chairmanfemi 4 years ago

    SEMI made it to the PREMIER LEAGUE

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