Former Nigerian striker, Victor Ikpeba has revealed that the Super Eagles lack creativity in the midfield ahead of the team’s 2022 World Cup qualifiers against the Central Africa Republic (CAR).
Ikpeba made this known during Monday Night Football Show on Supersports, where he said that Alex Iwobi has not done justice to the position.
The Atlanta Olympic gold medalist, who stated that Nigeria has what it takes to pick the maximum points against CAR, also disclosed that the team has not discovered a creative player such as Austine Okocha and Wilson Oruma in the senior national team.
“On paper it looks very clearly that we will pick the six points but we have to be very careful because football is always played on the field of play. However, we lack that creativity in the midfield.
“We don’t have that players such as Okocha and Oruma in the midfield that can create chances for our strikers. In Africa its fine but playing at the world stages, we need someone that is creative. Alex Iwobi can’t do the job for us. Ikpeba.
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COMMENTS
How many tournament did super eagles win with them, what was our winning ratio, how many assist did dey produce in super ealges shirt. Let’s stop this comparison and motivate the boys on ground
Okocha won Afcon in 1994, helped Nigeria reach round of 16 in 1994, won Olympics in 1996, reached world up last 16 in 1998 and Afcon final in 2000. Oruma won U-17 as a star-player in 1993.
Rohr and his players are yet to reach Afcon final or World Cup round of 16. They always celebrate qualification. Qualification na trophy?
with how many assist from both of them, when Sierra Leone defeated us, Cameroon came to Abuja to claim the nations cup, a pass from olise to Julius save us elimination 2000 nation cup, we fell to Senegal 2002, we lose to Tunisia after Kanu was sub out. Angola draw with us in Kano. we were almost drawing Gabon 2005, not until Kanu came to our help, the heart broken list are endless. Nobody is say they were not great, but at least the once we have now can deliver the result needed
See this one lol. Comeback and argue when Rohr wins Afcon, reaches World Cup round of 16 or wins Olympic gold medal.
Tell your Rohr and his players to win a medal first. Imagine dismissing a former African footballer of the year’s opinion from a keyboard lol
The creativity issue can be solved if only we can put Chidera Ejuke in the midfield…….Give Ejuke a free role in midfield…….Give Ejuke the license to express himself and the creativity issue is gone…….I mean we play with too many defensive midfielders at times…….Ejuke is very skillful and hard to dispossess and when other players get used to him playing the creative role they will gradually blend with his movement and creativity will be reborn in SE…….Ejuke is a magician who can dribble alot which is what we need now…….we saw a glimpse of it against cape Verde and giving him more responsibility in that midfield won’t be a bad idea…… Trying new things is the shortest way to a breakthrough……..We should not waste such player in the wings at least till we can get our creative midfield targets(probably Olise Ojaria or Eze) on board.
You didn’t get his point @Douglas. It’s not a matter of how many tonarments we won with them. It’s just facing the reality. Liberia won nothing with George Waeh, but the guy had an impact. Truth is: our struggles of late when we come up with top African teams or a top European side has been because we lack that cutting edge in the midfield, I mean that player that dictates the pace of the game and gives those killer passes to our strikers. Mikel did his bit and we could all see how that defence splitting pass to Ighalo in the match against Cameroon in Uyo literally made our passage to Russia so so we easy. That’s exactly what Ikpeba is talking about. And with the quality in the team now,it will be difficult for any team to beat us if we have a very competent midfield enforcer.
what of against Cameroon in 2019 nations cup, south Africa Algeria and Tunisia. have u forgotten Tunisia 2004, we fell to Tunisia after Kanu was sub, we draw against Angola in Kano with Okocha presence, Okocha and Oruma were there when we fell to Senegal. what are u telling me, nobody is disputing the fact the were great. we have to make do with what we have, Iwobi have more assist more than both Okocha and Oruma but together, check ur stat. Frank Lampard was never creative but the most successful England midfielder.
This is a harsh and unfair criticism of Iwobi – especially coming from an ex international whose views can easily reach the subject. Sure, he has his on and off days, but Iwobi is brilliant and a super workaholic on his day. He is not his uncle and shouldn’t necessarily try to be him. He should be his own man, whether he eventually attains Okocha’s legendary status or not.
That said, it comes down to the coaching crew to find or groom existing ones into a creative engine room in the middle. 2 to 3 in every position. Who’s our alternate number 10 in the absence of Iwobi – someone with a slightly different style/offer? The coaches first need to push further and be creative about this task. Use what you have to get what you need.
Our mudfield does lack creativity. If you remove iwobi and to some extent etebo your left with a lot of defensive midfielders with most of them not being the ball playing type. They just get the ball and quickly pass it to the nearest player. Ndidi is an exception though.
But what I think ikpeba is trying to say we lack creative depth unlike our attack where we have attacking players in abundance.
With iwobi, ndidi, etebo down look who we have to replace them. Bonke and frank onyeka does that look like a classy midfield to you.
Please let cut iwobi some slack. He had more assists and goals than many of our past no 10. Yes, he lacks that dominant effect in the midfield but we should also realize he rarely play that position in his club. To command a midfield and dictate the rhythm of the game only comes by playing regularly as a creative midfielder with your club.
To be honest here, you can never compare 2 different generations of football players at any point in time because the tactics and style of play changes overtime. Let us first define who that creative player is, is that person someone who dribbles and dribbles to the gallery without affecting the match or someone who creatively lays passes for others to use or a mixture of both. Mind you Okocha was not that creative midfielder we had back in the day. This is because he wasted his earlier talent playing to the gallery rather than affecting a match. He only started doing that when he moved to PSG and then at Bolton. In Eintrant Frankfurt, he will only dribble and want to score goals by himself. Not with his team mates in mind. With the case of Iwobi, he is doing his very best in that position and should not be compared. He should rather be assisted by another. Just like the glory Barca days when you had Xavi, Iniesta and Messi all in the midfield with one defensive minded player in the form of Sergio Busquets. That’s the sort of system we need to adopt. Iwobi and Ejuke in Midfield with Ndidi supporting or Iwobi, Ejaria and When I with Ndidi supporting or Iwobi, Ejaria and Ejuke with Ndidi supporting. Also the tactics have to change with all the team members supporting in a park the bus style of defensive and counter attacking play.
Though Ikpeba’s criticism is understandable, Simply put; you make do with what you have.
Since we don’t have the supposedly vintage number 10s, we play with what we have at our disposal.
Currently, We are blessed with wide players that are technical and skillful , such could be harnessed to bring about the creativity we need. Creativity is the means to think out of the box. It is time to seek creativity out of our treasure chest filled with creative wingers. Ejuke ( my preference for that role), Simon , Kalu , even Aribo and Iheanacho could all be sources of creativity. They just need to be trusted with the responsibility and challenged to such. Albeit till we get a natural that could be of support to Iwobi.
Speaking of Iwobi ; he might not be the midfield dynamo in the mold of a “natural” 10 but he is unique in his own way.
His versatility and swiftness has been useful in the Eagles and has aided us many times. So much so, his absence is vastly missed in the Eagles.
Iwobi has done enough to be an integral vital part of this Eagles’ machine.
The bad mouthing of Iwobi messed your point Victor Ikpeba.
One thing I have noticed about our ex-internationals is that many of them lack the ability to criticize constructively. It is a chronic deficiency. They open their mouth like machine gun and completely destroy the confidence and character of players.
That was how Taribo came the other day and said ARIBO IS “TOO WEAK” FOR AFRICAN FOOTBALL. African Guardiola too did his own and caused the premature retirement of Enyeama.
Even if it is true that Iwobi has not been meeting up to expectation, IS THIS THE BEST WAY TO PASS THE POINT ACROSS? Comparing Iwobi to his uncle? Are Iwobi and Okocha the same kind of players?
I’m assuming Ikpeba and Okocha are friends, considering that they won Olympic gold together. If I were in his shoes, I would reach out to Okocha to arrange a lunch or something with Iwobi. We will go to England together to pay him a visit. Then, over a glass of wine or something, you discuss what Iwobi needs to do to improve his game, and make practical suggestions.
Now that this harsh criticism has been delivered thru the press, na who this one epp?
Iwobi is a lad that has served us marvelously well! Yes, his performances of late have been a bit underwhelming. But I don’t have a short memory. Iwobi has been a big part of our success in the past. Instead of character assassination, critics should look for better ways to express their opinions next time.
@ Pompeii may God bless you mightily for this very sensible comment. I read this Ikpeba report and only just felt like throwing up. How is this thrash coming from these sort of ex-international going to positively impact on the said player or SE team. If truly Ikpeba meant well, Iwobi is very reachable through his uncle, Rohr also is reachable with suggestion of a better option. These lots that call themselves ex this ex that only played football but lack proper football education hence they are all struggling to do anything meaningful after their career ended, except to grant meaningless interviews to ridicule.GOD BLESS ALEXANDER THE GREAT/KING IWOBI.
Glory, the more interviews these ex-internationals give, the more obvious it becomes why they were not more successful, despite being the most talented bunch of players Nigeria has ever had.
If they loved one another and were united, like this present squad, their set would have won a truckload of trophies. I believe they could have been the first African side to win the world cup.
Their problem was, and still is, HEAVY BAD BELLE!
THEY DON’T KNOW HOW TO PROPERLY COMMUNICATE THEIR FEELINGS OR OPINIONS.
Mosquito that you can kill with insecticide, ex-international will want to throw grenade at it, or spray it with a AK-47!
Greatly gifted as individuals, they can’t come together in love and unity. There are a few exceptions, like Uche Okechukwu, who I don’t know personally, but from what I saw and heard, the guy was 100% team oriented. While other team mates were busy quarreling with Yekini and refusing to celebrate his goals or give him passes. Quarreling up and down. Huge egos all over the place!
Indeed, in football, as in anything in life, talent alone does not bring success. ATTITUDE COUNTS FOR SO MUCH MORE.
@Pompei… you worship Iwobi… the dude is just average, Ikpeba is right… Iwobi has no steel to his midfield game! What is so special about Iwobi as a midfield player… can we compare him to an Oruma or Okocha. Iwobi does not even come close to James Obiorah… players who were even wasted by callup politics!
Jimbo, I worship God, not any man. Certainly not Iwobi.
Iwobi is a forward not a creative midfielder….. Iwobi launches attacks like a classic number 8….. lately he has excelled at the right wing for Everton and he has added a lot to his game there…….We should not blame Iwobi for our lack of creativity…….A play maker is different from a forward or winger……… Iheanacho is also not a play maker,he is a classic number 8 who sometimes can be used as a 9……A play maker is a midfielder who is saddled with responsibility of keeping the ball for the team……he is usually a good dribbler who is almost impossible to dispossess……He should also have vision and must be ready to take risk……A playmaker must be ready to take on players and he must be very active in trying to win back the ball when it is lost……A playmaker doesn’t have a particular wing because he roams the field picking up the pieces of everything and creating something out of it…….A playmaker’s most potent weapon is his dribbling skills…… some teams play with 2 playmakers with one playing deeper or both rotating it…….Anguissa of Napoli is a classic play maker……Benaldo sylva of Man City is a play maker……Some teams don’t play with a play maker because of their direct style of play……Such teams have multiple attacking forward with blistering pace and good wing backs who are always present when an attack is launched example is Liverpool Chelsea……. Nigeria has never been a direct team from day one because we always like to create our chances openly……we have always used a creative midfielder from day one…….okocha tried his best during his day so also did Mikel.
I don’t understand what Ikpeba is talking about because Iwobi may not be as good as his uncle in terms of dribbling but for sure he is more effective as a team player than Okocha. So both have their strong as well as week points. Wasn’t Iwobi the one that gave the two assist that resulted in the two goals scored against Liberia? Let’s forget what everton fans and some critical English pundits are saying. Iwobi is the reason James was sold .The coach says he is satisfied with Iwobi as his number 10. Pls people should first check Iwobi’s statistics of assists and goals for S.E before coming here to criticize.
This is a very frank statement by Ikpeba and very on-point… It is those who have not played football that will be impressed with Alex Iwobi… he cant shoot, cant tackle, lacks final productive decisions, not convincing with his passes, lacks stamina, has no grit to his game, completely absent on deadballs and lacks any midfield command to his game… place Iwobi side by side with the likes of Dacoure, and guys whom he has played alongside in similar role you will know you cant rely on Iwobi… the worst is that he came from the famed Arsenal acedemy yet despite already in his mid 20s has no real presence and dominance to his midfield game… I swear play an Iwobi led midfield against an Nwakali led midfield… Iwobi wont see ball to play… guys bone, Iwobi is a flashy footballer, nifty footwork but no effect… since Iwobi turned professional, please someone should mention the season he has managed up to 8goals in all competitions… if you have played football, especially midfield, you will pray for a player like Iwobi to come up against you on a match day in a midfield duel… Iwobi cant play in Italy… he is too soft! Mind you, this is not saying he is not a good player folks… he just does not have midfield dominance!
U were d one that score d goal against Zambia in 2018 world cup qualifiers, d one against Cameroon and other. Are u aware Iwobi has more goal assist in super ealges than Okocha and Oruma put together? What did d creativity of Okocha and Oruma earn us. The endless heart breaking list is still with us. Cameroon final in Lagos 2000, against Senegal 2002, against Tunisia 2004, against Angola 2005. Abi is it d one against sirre lone, or how they turn us to mathematics. Permutation, if A loss to b and C defeat Z. Have u forgotten it took Okocha years to start play matured game, we are greatful for their service. Lets allow this once to grow to their status
@JimmyBall, has your Nwakali managed up to 5 goals in a season, let alone command a position for 90 mins full on. I followed the dude is SD Alcorcon and now at Huesca. He is even been subbed on and off. Was your Nwakali not at Arsenal too as a teenager in the same squad as Iwobi? Who got selected for promotion into Senior team. Fact remains is that the Super Eagles have never in their history played with a very creative midfielder like what Ikpeba is talking about. Super Eagles yesterday or today have never grown such a player in the likes of Romario, Rivaldo, Kaka, Zidane, Pirlo, Marco Verrati etc.
Even players like Edgar Davids and Clarence Seedorf come to mind and these players could not dribble one bit. Creativity isn’t always about dribbling, but laying a decisive pass to change the game. That’s it really.
Career Stats
Alex Iwobi: 278 matches – 36 goals; 39 assists – Averaging 1 goal contribution every 4 games.
Kelechi Nwakali: 117 matches – 12 goals, 6 assists – Averaging 1 goal contribution every 7 games.
“… I swear play an Iwobi led midfield against an Nwakali led midfield… Iwobi wont see ball to play…”…LMAOOOo
There is a reason why 1 has played in a UEFA final and the other is still struggling to get one decent season of football in an elite division….1 will earn his 50th cap by Sunday and the other is yet to even make an official debut.
Thank God both Iwobi and Nwakali are both blacks, otherwise we would have heard stories of how Iwobi is only getting invitations to the SE because he is white…LMAOOoo.
The last time I checked, Nwakali was flung out of the same Arsenal where Iwobi made his mark at the highest level of the game.
@Dr.Drey… Nwakali is two years younger than Iwobi. He was not flung from Arsenal.
He was just to precocious to be wasted in their U-18s and other lower grade weak English developmental football that Arsenal wanted him to develop too fast overnight sending him away to multiple loans.
A young player needs an environment where he is loved and familiar with to thrive. Same thing almost ruined Awoniyi at Liverpool and Osimhen at Wolfsburg… clubs not being patient with precocious youngsters…
Dont you know what English teams and their stringent work permit issues does to young players especially those from outside EU?
If Nwakali is weak and not good… was Musa Yahaya who started out with Totenham Hotspurs also weak?
Who in football does not know that Musa Yahaya and Kelechi Nwakali do not lack in talent compared to the top talents who came through in the football world about the same time as them?
These young players suffer because Nigeria lack the platform to develop its own! Can you say Jamal Musiala and Jude Bellingham are more talented than Kelechi Nwakali and Musa yahaya?
The difference is that those guys come from countries that will give them all the platform and exposure they need… while in our case we just waste them with football politics and poor programmes for youngsters…
Nwakali still had 3 years on his Arsenal contract when he was sold to Huesca FOR FREE. They practically told Huesca, you guys can have this one for free…he’s of no value to us. 3 years later, HUESCA CANNOT SAY THEY’VE HAD “VALUE FOR MONEY” SPENT ON NWAKALI even though we was bought for free.
Nwakali is 2 years younger than Iwobi….LMAOooo…..somebody is now scrambling for excuses in defense of his starboy who is struggling in 2nd division….LMAOoo
The last time I checked, the rules were not less stringent when the likes of Iheanacho and Isaac Success signed and debuted for their own English clubs o…..LMAOOoooo…..let me not even mention Mikel. Maybe those ones are whites….LMAOoo…or maybe they are blacks from south america…..LMAOooo. It has gotten to Nwakali’s turn now somebody has remembered work permit issues and skin colour.
Keep on perambulating and dancing around in whataboutries with all sorts of silly excuses for your superstar.
“….I swear play an Iwobi led midfield against an Nwakali led midfield… Iwobi wont see ball to play….” LMAOooooo.
Tell Nwakali to go and play in a UEFA cup final first before even playing an Nwakali led midfield against an Iwobi led midfield…..LMAOoooo
Please note Iwobi also scored in the final.
@JimmyBall, you have failed to understand that it is not talent that makes you to succeed at any big football club. Rather it is that player that is ready to grow and add new areas to his game that makes him succeed eventually. This is something that Iwobi has demonstrated over Nwakali. Laying killer passes, defending and attacking, plus playing several roles. Iwobi has at least played and impressed all the coaches he has worked with to an extent. Nwakali is not as dynamic as Iwobi, stats dont lie neither does blind faith in a player help any team to progress.
@Ben… how much of Nwakali’s recent games have you watched! Rohr prefers to field Ahmed Musa as a no. 10 to end up with a rating of 4/10 like he has managed in all his recent games for us than try a player like Nwakali even for once…
That guy is the missing link in Super Eagles till date… it does not matter if he is playing Segunda…
…he is a starter for HUESCA, I follow his matches and guys should spend time to watch him.
Gernot Rohr is not keen on Nwakali that is all I can say, that guy is a real number 10 that can do what Iwobi cant…
Na God save Iwobi say Ancelotti don comot Everton otherwise by now maybe na leftback for get Iwobi… Lol.
Hahahaha…Nwakali is not even getting 4/10 ratings in his club’s matches. He’d be lucky to average 5/10 so far this season, even in a 2nd division…..LMAOOoo.
If you TRULY watch his matches you wont come here praising him….LMAOOOo. He was yanked off at halftime on saturday after being pretty useless for the whole half…..LMAOOo. Be “watching” his live matches, not “following” on livescore platforms…LMAOoo.
On what basis should Rohr rate anyone who isnt even rated at club level in the first instance…LMAOooo..on the basis of 2015 U17 world cup performance…??? Is Jamilu Collins sitting on the bench at Paderborn…? Was Abraham Marcus sitting on the bench when Rohr decided to call him up whilst he was still in a 2nd division…? Was Sadiq Umar sitting on the bench when Rohr called him up…? Anybody could close their eyes and name these guys on the starting sheets of their various clubs, coupled with good performances week in week out from them
Your boy cannot even put together a decent, half a season of commendable, excellent, breathtaking or outstanding performances in a lowly club like SD HUESCA, yet he is the one that will average one goal contribution every 2 games for the Super Eagles like Iwobi or even better…..LMAOoooo.
If he continues the way he has started this season I can bet another loan move awaits him in January again….LMAOooo…maybe it will be 3rd division this time around…who knows…?
As “poor” as you want to paint Iwobi, I cant remember any of his coaches flushing him out of the club on loan….you can please remind us if you remember any…..LMAOoooo
A FA cup, Community Shield, Europa finalist, AFCON bronze medalist no go see ball play against someone struggling to tie down a place at Huesca in his 3rd season…..LMAOOoo. By the time Iwobi nutmeg your boy 4-5 times in 1st half alone, nobody to tell the coach to withdraw am b4 Iwobi break in back.
@Dr.Drey… any stats you bring out for Iwobi will only be at best superficial because we are waiting for the season since he turned a top professional… some six years ago, playing in mostly decent teams (Arsenal & Everton) to score 6goals in all competition in a single season playing advanced positions as a forward/Midfield… last time he said he has found his confidence back under Bernitez… it is just pitiful to hear a talented player like that talking weak, like someone who cant conquer his own timidness… and self-imposed pitch limitations!
Hahahahaha…so the stats presented up there for Nwakali since 2016/2017 season when he started playing pro-football too are sub-ficial…..LMAOOoo
Maybe you should also tell us when your brave, strong superstar Nwakali also ever tallied 6 goals in all competitions in a season playing 2nd division football all over the place….LMAOooo….we are not even talking premier league football….LMAOoo…..2ND DIVISION…!
At least Iwobi is finding confidence in the EPL and is even HIGHLY regarded by coaches like Benitez and Ancellotti. Pls what is happening to your boy in the Spanish 2nd division…??? He cant guarantee a starting shirt in the 2nd division, neither can he guarante 90 minutes of game time even if he starts……LMAOoooo.
Or is Iwobi getting “special treatment because he is white”…..LMAOOooo.
As bad as you have tried to paint Iwobi….even you yourself cant say with boldness that Iwobi at 23 would have been struggling at SD HUESCA they way your Strong, Brave, Forceful, Commanding, Imposing Nwakali has struggled for close to 3 seasons now……LMAOOooooo
The problem is the coach!!! Its been over 4 years now that this dude has been in charge, yet we still don’t have a defined way of playing or an identity. He is too conservative, he has been using the same bulk of players he started with, recycling them over and over again, even when they are under performing. This dude invites new players to friendlies, fields majority of the old players the entire 90mins and allow new invites taste less than 10mins of action and never invites them again. without proper assessment. Give me one reason why Akpeyi keeps getting call ups, we have enough young keepers out there in Nigeria, in Isreal, even in the youth teams in England, at least try them out. Tell me the role of shehu Abdullahi in that team? We have young and promising midfielders sprouting all over Europe, but he is stuck with Etebo and Iwobi for creativity. Aribo had just one good game, he immedaitely made him a permanent starter even when the guy is under performing at times. He overused Ndidi for both competitive games and friendlies and failed at least try out new players in the DM position just to add a diffrent dynamics. We have always lacked the cutting edge, we find it hard to convincing stamp our authority in a game. We have fast rising midfielders in Europe, invite them, give them playing time, call them up for a second time, have a 2nd assessment if need be, instead of discarding them after 6mins of play and reverting back to the old war lords. For years this dude kept on inviting Ezenwa to the team even when Ezenwa was no longer the first choice keeper in his club. So please, lets take time to analyze the coaches flaws instead of criticizing Ikpebas comment or trying to compare the current team with the 94 Squad. Remember, Rhor invited the same Ebere Eze to a friendly match in London some years ago, the lad trained with the team, but rhor never used him for some reasons I dont know. High flying winger Otasowie was invited at some point, but rhor only gave him 5mins but allowed Ahmed Musa and moses simon play the entire game (Players that he already knows their capabilities). He made wrong decision during the semifinal match against Algeria, which cost us. He did the same thing against Argentina at the world cup which got us eliminated. How come no ones is talking about his obvious tactical deficencies.
TALENT + ATTITUDE/MENTALITY + HARD WORK = GREATNESS
Iwobi, like most of our current squad, is a good player.
To become great, he should borrow a leaf from CR7.
See video below of Evra narrating an experience he had when CR7 invited him to lunch at his residence. You will understand why CR7 has been so successful in his career after watching this video. This is the kind of work ethic that Iwobi and his SE colleagues need to get to the next level. Granted, CR7 is loco. The guy is abnormal. So I won’t expect our boys to train like him. But just spending 1 or 2 more hours extra in training everyday can yield significant dividends. Believing, really believing, deep down, having a strong desire for success. This is what improves a player.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8qoKC45Qns
Jimmy ball you didn’t use to watch super eagle football so stop give us useless analysis u are comparering iwobi with nwakali pls who is nwakali a player that its not good enough to play for huesca u are using that u17 tournament to judge nwakali game after that tournament where is he is he not team mate with osimeh chukwueze?av u forgot iwobi goal sent us to Russian the dude is trying is best for us is one of our best player in afcon even till now we didn’t av a player that can give iwobi pass right now if u av give name or are we going to be begin those player that don’t want to play for us?e.g eze,olise and co despite England try to stop iwobi from playing for Nigeria at airport ahead of his debut he still find his way to get to Nigeria and play for us this is same player that its trying to convince other player to play for us he always been among early arrival in d camp atleas this guy didn’t deserve criticism
After all said and done, Iwobi has 9 goals (ALL FROM OPEN PLAY), as many assists and numerous secondary assists for the super eagles, and isnt warming the bench in some second division club.
Iwobi might be a cat in the EPL, but he is a LION for the Super eagles….Iwobi hardly goes 2 games in the SE colors without being involved in any goal scored.
Iwobi might not be a master dribbler like Jay jay or a long range shooter like Oruma, but his goals + assists + secondary assists contribution per game in the green and white surpasses both of Okocha and Oruma put together…The stats dont lie……and in 2021, that’s all that matters for every midfielder…not the number of successful dribbles.
When I look at the match stats of our last 10 matches in which iwobi has featured, the number of chances we created, the number of shots on target and the number of goals scored, I cant help but wonder if Victor Ikpeba truly said we lack creativity or that Iwobi hasnt done well for us so far. Even in the matches against cameroon where we didnt score a goal, we still created the better chances over both legs of the friendlies.
So I wonder where all those chances were falling from if they weren’t being created.
Guys… remember this comment by @Dr.Dey… aka Zeus of CSN… we will talk about this comment more in detail tomorrow when we are all back from work… “Iwobi might not be a master dribbler like Jay jay or a long range shooter like Oruma, but his goals + assists + secondary assists contribution per game in the green and white surpasses both of Okocha and Oruma put together”… Iwobinho who is still learning how to play football with confidence afer 6years of professional football… bro Drey, you no serious!
Stats do not lie.
I am not wishful thinker like you who vomits superfluous statements without processing them in the head, nor getting his facts right first.
Go and review his “goals + assists + secondary assists contribution per game” ratios and double check them with Okocha and Oruma’s combined.
“…..I swear play an Iwobi led midfield against an Nwakali led midfield….Iwobi wont see ball to play…” LMAOoooo. So if Everton meets Huesca Iwobi no go see ball play….LMAOOoo.
Nor be by force to comment on CSN o…..LMAOooo. Sometimes its best for your dignity to keep silent…..LMAOOooo
Play Nwakali against Iwobi… Iwobi no go see ball play… na me talk am!
You wey say… Iwobi’s Super Eagles’s career has been more productive than Oruma and Okocha combined… Lol.
Ok, this is the height of ridiculousness.
Jimbo, that thing you’re smoking this evening is not doing you any good.
Hahahahaha @pompei….leave am make he enjoy wetin in dey smoke alone….LMAOooo.
“…It is those who have not played football that will be impressed with Alex Iwobi…” LMAOoooo. Somebody here knows more football than Rohr, Ancelloti and Benitez put together…….LMAOoooo.
The rest of us na lookmon we be….LMAOooo
This ball you always claim to have played, na monkey post, or choosing?
Person wey play ball, wey sabi ball, will recognize how gifted Iwobi is.
So Wenger, Rohr, Ancelloti, Benitez, Unai Emery no sabi ball where the great Jimbo dey, abi? Hehehehehe! Shekpe na bastard sha!
My guy park well abeg 🙂 🙂 🙂
Pompei, not po.
…hahaha. @Dr.Drey will always feign to be already in bed until @Jimmyball come out with his usual bitter truth… Lol.
Iwobi this… Iwobi that… guy does not improve at all despite having the fortune of being around decent teams season-in season-out…
People who see beyond nutmegs and nifty footworks know if you rely on Iwobi you will always go home with the short end of the twig… hahahaha.
I really like Iwobi but, I must be frank with him to say, his game is too soft and never dominant…
I see the fear of Dr.Drey is the reason you’ve been cowed in hiding of late… until you suddenly found your mojo tonight thinking Dr.Drey was already in bed
So It is your Nwakali this is improving, warming the bench of SD HUESCA…yes…SD HUESCA (of all clubs) in the Spanish 2nd division. 3 seasons at HUESCA and no one can vouch for him being in the starting line up the way we can vouch for Sadiq starting for Almeria EVERY single game in the season…? No one can even say boldly that Nwakali has outgrown 2nd division football the wasy we say Sadiq has outgrown the segunda liga or the way we say Onuachu has outgrown the Belgian league.
ZERO goals ZERO assists in 3 seasons SUPERSTAR WORLD CLASS Nwakali who is better than all SE midfielders combined including MIKEL. Those are your so-called “bitter truths”
Iwobi this….Iwobi that…yes….Iwobi this, Iwobi that….9 goals, as many assists and several key passes for the Super Eagles already, yet he’s just 24 years of age. The last time I checked, Iwobi isnt even being shipped out on loan at his clubs….yet somebody’s middle name at the age of 24 is ‘loan’, even in the 2nd division and you are yuen yuen yuen yuen all about Iwobi who hardly goes 2 games for the SE without being involved in 1 goal for the past 2-3 years….???
Tell your Nwakali to tie down an GUARANTEED place in SD HUESCA first before you mention him in the same sentence with Iwobi. Iwobi will not play 3 seasons in Spanish second division and not score or assist a single goal. 3 SOLID YEARS….ZERO GOALS…ZERO ASSISTS
let me correct you… Iwobi is now 25yrs and Nwakali 23years… do not overstate just to force a short twig on us… lol. Sadiq that you are hailing today as an elite CSN contributor is suppose to be the one for you to be clamouring for to replace Musa Ahmed to justifiably fill Northern quota… but no, you will continue to clamour for a Musa who has eaten so much gworo these days to support his “Burantashi” chewing stick to be able to do a good work on his women in harem… but double standards wont let you stand for the truth and obvious… hahaha.
24, 25…whatever.
But at least the weak, soft, non dominant Iwobi was still 24 when he was already counting 9 goals 5 assists in SE colours while your brave, strong superstar is not anywhere near an official debut yet at the age of 23…..LMAOooo
Your Nwakali at 20whatever still cant command a guaranteed shirt at HUESCA in his 3rd season, ZERO goals and ZERO assist…..LMAOoooo. But he is the messiah the supper eagles needs in order to start scoring double digits every game…..LMAOOOoo.
Maybe that one too is that also an overstatement…???LMAOOoo
Dont overstate to force the short end of the twig on us… be right with your statements…
Nwakali played half season to get Huesca promoted… started in the top flight with them onyl for a half season…
…he dropped to help Alcorcon for another half season… so in all honesty, he has just joined Huesca only for a combined season and half…
…combined he has played 34 games… Huesca(16) and Alcorcon (18) and scored 4goals with Alcorcon… call it penalties… goal na goal…
…Now let us know how many Iwobi has scored in the last two years from Arsenal to Everton.
…how much topflight soccer has Kingsley Michael played for Bologna in Serie A before he got his chance against Cape Verde and posted a commanding performance?
…if you get am you get am @Dr.Drey… “ball know im people”… who sabi no the sweat!
@Dr.Drey… Iwobi played a combined 65games from 2019 to 2021 for Arsenal and Everton returning only a paltry 4goals… make we hear word about Iwobi abeg!
Hahahahaha…..Iwobi scored 4 goals and 3 assists for Arsenal alone in the year 2019…..LMAOooo. You don come again with your fake stats….LMAOooo….Only you knows where you get them from….LMAOooo. Lets not even talk about his 5 goals and 5 assists in Everton colours and the 4 goals and 4 assists in SE colours in the same period.
How many goals your commanding and imposing nwakali don score for a ragtag club like Huesca since 2019….??? Including Porto B in Portuguese 2nd division. 4 goals (including 2 penalties) and ZERO asissts till tomorrow……LMAOOooo
That is the person that will come into the national team to do what Iwobi cannot do….LMAOooo. Tell his to first do what Iwobi cannot do at clublevel first before dreaming of coming to do what iwobi cannot do at national team level.
Na you make you shut up will all your noise about Nwakali. He is no messiah. If he’s not saving his club in segunda division, then he isnt gonna be saving the SE.
Hahahahaha…is Nwakali in his 3rd season at Huesca OR NOT….LMAOOooo??? Hehahhahaha…..Somebody in his usual desperation wants to delete some seasons from the soccer calendar again o….LMAOOoo. Dont give us useless whataboutries about how he dropped to Alcorcon.
He was flushed out on loan in his 2nd season because he was plain useless to Huesca in the first instance….if he was so useful he wouldn’t be farmed out on loan.
From a possible 71 matches for Huesca since when he moved to the club your boy has only ever played 19….yes NINETEEN TIMES ONLY….19 out of 71 possible matches….LMAOooo. And has only played 90 minutes 3 times ever….LMAOooo and this is meant to be his 3rd season….LMAOooo
That one too is that also an overstatement…??? LMAOOoo.
Somebody is desperately trying to cover the abysmally dismal and shabby records and performances of his tin-god.
Pls hurry up…go and delete all these “over-stated” stats and records from the record-books….LMAOoooo
At the age of 23, your messiah is still struggling for a guaranteed 1st team shirt in a classless club in the Spanish 2nd division, talk more of being called one of the star performance or key/influential players or backbone of the club. LMAOOoo.
But he’s the one that SE needs to win the world cup….LMAOoo
The Super Eagles’ midfield lacks creativity with its current anchorman Alex Iwobi not good enough for the job.
These sentiments were espoused by former Prince of Monaco Victor Ikpeba who nowadays is the Prince of punditry.
Is it fair to suggest that Iwobi is not good enough for that position?
Iwobi sees himself as a centre attacking midfielder but if truth be told, some of his most memorable periods for Nigeria have come when he played in other positions.
For the national team, Iwobi has scored 9 goals and provided 4 assists in 48 outings. Five of his goals and two of his assists came when played as a centre forward and as one of the wingers.
In fact, some observers would argue – with some justification – that 2 assists (and 4 goals) in 24 outings as a centre attacking midfielder for Nigeria does not represent impressive returns from a player with whom much is (always) expected.
With this in mind, one can understand to a degree where Victor Ikpeba is coming from.
Iwobi has never been one to rack up the numbers for club and country (one reason why Arsenal fans didn’t mourn his exit and why Everton fans fume at their acquisition!). Sadly for the 25 year old, football is a numbers game where success or failure is judged by raw data and statistics.
More so these days with the mega bucks thrown into the game.
But fans of Iwobi are unperturbed. He may not be stacking up the figures but his passion, desire, patriotism, workrate and hunger in Nigeria colours will always endear him to them.
Plus, many fans are quick to point to Iwobi’s “hidden stats” as evidence of his immense value to the national team. These are number of chances the Super Eagles’ midfield create in matches (whether these result in goals or not) when anchored by Iwobi and his numerous pre-assists in build up to goals.
However, for analytical purposes only, if you compare Alex Iwobi’s output for Nigeria with that of Ghana’s Thomas Partey, you will see why pundits like Ikpeba demand more from the Everton man.
From either center of defensive midfield for Ghana, Partey has scored 9 goals and has provided 4 assists in all of his 30 international caps thus far.
His goals and assists (from a more withdrawn position) mirror that of Iwobi’s (who features further up the pitch) despite Partey’s lesser international caps.
And when you take Iwobi out of the picture, which other attacking midfielders does Rohr invite? You have Iheanacho, Aribo and Etebo who can play in that position but are they cunning and creative? Do they light up the atmosphere with jaw dropping moves?
Does our attacking midfield department have spark? Is it currently a conduit for creating bountiful goal scoring opportunities?
The caveat – I think – is that Gernot Rohr’s philosophy plays much emphasis on creating chances from the flanks. That is where the Super Eagles are most lethal.
And Rohr is getting results (which is what matters).
So, I think the attacking midfield of the Super Eagles is adequate enough for how Rohr sets out his team. And let’s face it, there are not that many “flair midfield players” available to Nigeria at this time.
We have to make do with what we have and build the team to maximize our areas of strength.
That is what Rohr is doing.
Alex has done more than 4 assists in S.E colours sir. He is on 7 assists currently.
And despite your use of flowery language , your numbers were flawed about Iwobi. Also. your assumptions of Arsenal and everton fans. As far as we have now, Iwobi is the best thing we have when it comes to that playmaking role. Even his SE stats back that up…
Well spoken Mr. Ikpeba. Am 100% with you on this. This is why I said we shouldn’t expect too much from Super Eagles.
The current team lack creativity and the only player that can do the job is Nwakali.
So many people misunderstood you but I agree with you .
Iwobi is a fantastic players but he is very dangerous at the 18 yards box only.
When was the last Iwobi distributing ball ball from long range and every where on the pitch?
Kai, I’m busy to talk wella today. We’ll, good luck Super Eagles. Ire o. God bless Nigeria!!!
THE ONLY PLAYER THAT CAN DO THE JOB IS NWAKALI.
Only Nwakali. There is no other Nigerian anywhere in the world that can play as a creative midfielder for the SE, except Nwakali.
Omo9ja, how far? Are you ok today? E be like say you and Jimbo have been puffing hard on some hazardous substances, loool.
Make unu do commot from mama Pato joint.
Shekpe na bastard ooo. Please use in moderation.
Yes. I repeat, only Nwakali is the best for the role of that no 10 at the moment. The closest to that Nwakali is Ejaria.
I’m sorry, I don’t drink and I don’t smoke.
So Pompei, you drink Sępę ba? Kai, waatini fat belly niyę oooo lolz. So, iwona ma njogo? lol.
Nonetheless, this is why I don’t see coach Rohr as a coach that can take Super Eagles to the promised land.
He, Oga Rohr and Coach Agu are far from that because they don’t believe in themselves, they are not bold enough to take the risk and they are just recycling players.
Amunike and Egbo will be launching now when reading this Mr Ikpeba comment because they know what to do but NFF is blocking the wise men for nothing.
Marnu Gerba built his team on Nacho, Yahya, Nwakali and Alfa during the under17 Championship in UAE2013.
Amunike built his team around Nwakali. That Nwakali junior is a raw talent that Super Eagles is missing at this moment.
Late Keshi also built his team on Mikel. No Mikel no Keshi’s team.
So, we can not say who is the main engine in that Oga Rohr and Oga Agu’s team.
I think it might be Akpeyi and Osimhen I guess. I am shaking my head for you NFF.
As I was saying, If you are in doubt, I pray that Oga Rohr should give Nwakali a chance to play for just 45 minutes then, you all will the beautiful display from this Oga Rohr Eagles.
I pray that our next opposition doesn’t clip down our wingers. If they do, no way out be that o and that is the end of the story.
To be honest with ourselves, the coaching department lacks vision and modern football ⚽️.
What do you expecting from the coaching crew that brings back Akpeyi?
What do we expecting from coaching crew that preferred the same style of strikers in Super Eagles?
Osimhen/Onuachu/Awoniyi?
Instead of Osimhen/Dennis/Onuachu/Dessers/
Awoniyi?
I don’t get it because NFF should be blamed though.
Iwobi is injured and you invited a striker to replace Iwobi and in the end, the coach will start converting players when we have the players that fit into that position? Who does that kę.
Oga Rohr followers are just twisting Ikpeba words because they don’t like to hear the truth.
Iwobi is trying his best but the coaching crew should extend their invitation to other midfielders. We have them now.
Anyway, as I said last week, we can only be patient for now because no long thing.
I urged Oga Rohr and his crew to do whenever they wanted to do now because we patriotic Nigerians will decide after the Afcon in Cameroon. Enough of excuses.
Over the five years of Oga Rohr and Oga Agu, Super Eagles failed to produce a world class goalie and now, We are talking about creativity in the Super Eagles.
Is he moving the Super Eagles forward or backward?
Digest my words one by one and figure it out why Super Eagles may not win a tea cup under Oga Rohr and Oga Agu. Ire o. God bless Nigeria!!!
Jimmyball, nobody here hates Nwakali. I personally love his game. The long range passes, the ability with dead balls, the close control. Nwakali’s game is quite similar to Mikel, actually. I would love to see Nwakali one day in the SE squad. But he has to earn it.
Now, I understand your desire to see Nwakali get a call up. But running down Iwobi to accomplish that is not ok. You keep saying Iwobi “has no steel in his game”.
Is it Ajaokuta steel, abi na imported from China?
What of Nwakali? Is it Nwakali that has steel in his game? He is slight of build and shies away from crunchy tackles. Not a robust tackler in any way. Iwobi on a good day will cover more blades of grass than Nwakali. Has more stamina. Try playing Nwakali as a wing back, let’s see how he copes!
Again, Nwakali is a gifted player, no doubt. But it’s up to him to show the progression that will draw Rohr’s attention.
Like Dr. Drey mentioned, Iwobi may not be his best in the premiership, but in Nigeria colors, that boy delivers! He’s averaged a goal in every 5 games for Nigeria so far, not mentioning his numerous assists. That’s a very decent return. Talking about assists, if you count the moves he starts which result in chances, his link-up play, and his incisive passes, you can see why he has become so important to the way the SE play. On their good day, the SE move the ball swiftly. And Iwobi is right at the heart of most of the good things going on.
Instead of bad-mouthing the lad, why not just encourage him to produce more. More goals, more assists. That’s the difference between Iwobi and the top players of his type in the world.
Even the coach of BRAZIL….a whole SELECAO of BRAZIL, looked at the entire Nigerian team and singled out Iwobi as the man they must stop in order to make the SE stop functioning. Not to talk of stunt Benin Republic pulled with their fake covid results in our penultimate AFCON qualifier.
All these people dem no sabi ball…..LMAOOooooooo.
Nigerian soccer fans are ridiculous and ungrateful at times. Iwobi performs way better than he does for his clubside. What other creative midfielder do we have now? Let’s be realistic. The other ones don’t want to switch nationality yet but yet some individuals suffering from myopia say he’s not good enough lol..
God bless you @ footballfanatic, you keep hitting the nail just rightly on its head. Nigerians are pathetically ungrateful.Apologise to the few exceptions. Reading some complete ignorant so called football fans comparing Iwobi to Neakali, just tells you so many things about such persons. Absolutely disgusting. Can’t waste my time responding to their very outdated understanding of how football is played cos their write-ups tells just everyone here that either they know nothing about football or just purely out here to destroy a target player if only to pave way for theirs who may have promised them peanuts to survive on. FOOTBALL HAS BEEN EVOLVING FROM OVER THE YEARS AWAY FROM INDIVIDUAL PLAY/BRILLIANCE INTO TEAM PLAY. AND THE KIND OF FOOTBALL WE ARE HAVING TODAY IS PURELY FOUNDED ON TEAM PLAY. FOR YOU TO BE COUNTED IN TODAYS GAME, YOU MUST DO WHATEVER YOUR COACH ASKED OF YOU RELEGATING YOUR STYLE,OTHERWISE YOU RETURN TO THE BENCH. SO AN OUTDATED SO CALLED FOOTBALL EXPERT DONT BELONG TO PRESENT DAY FOOTBALL, SUCH CAN CONTINUE IN THEIR LONELY WILDERNESS COMPARING PLAYERS OF DIFFERENT AGES, I CARELESS. IWOBI YES, HAS HIS WEAKNESS, WHICH HE HUMBLY KEEPS WORKING ON, BUT REMAINS OUR BEST OPTION AROUND ANYWHERE AT THE MOMENT. AND MAJORITY OF FANS AS AGAINST THE EXTREMELY FEW IGNORAMUS LOVE AND APPRECIATE HIM SO SO DEARLY. HONESTLY SPEAKING WHERE IS THAT SORT OF ATTACKING MIDFIELDER AROUND THE WORLD AT THE MOMENT. WHO IS THE ATTACKING MIDFIELDER IN THE ENGLISH, ITALY, FRENCH, ETC TEAM? WHERE IS THAT TYPE OF A MARQUEE ATTACKING MIDFIELDER IN ALL THE TOP FOOTBALL TEAMS? Ignorance wanna drag everyone back to how football was played many many years back in the days. HOW SOOOO LAUGHABLE THAT IS? AN INTELLIGENT VIEW ON FOOTBALL NOWADAYS SHOULD PUT ALL EMPHASIS ON TEAM PLAY, RATHER THAN INDIVIDUAL, OTHERWISE SUCH VIEWS WILL ONLY BE GOOD FOR THE TRASH CAN. SO TEAM WISE, IS IWOBI HELPING THE SE PLAY BETTER AS A TEAM? MY ANSWER IS 100%. HE DOES IT AND HAS BEEN DOING BETTER THAN ALL OUR SO CALLED NUMBER 10 ALBEIT LESS SKILLFUL THAN THE LIKES OF OKOCHA. IWOBI BRINGS THE TEAM TOGETHER,CREATING CHANCES, SCORING, DEFENDING, BUILDING UP PLAY, HENCE WHEN HE IS NOT PLAYING, THE TEAM BECOMES A BIT DISJOINTED. EVERY TOP MANAGER,WHO IT SEEMS OUR IGNORAMUS KNOWS FOOTBALL BETTER THAN ALWAYS PICK OUT IWOBI FOR SPECIAL MENTION. GOD BLESS ALEXANDER THE KING IWOBI, GOD BLESS ALL DESERVING SE PLAYERS, GOD BLESS THE EVER HUMBLE GERNOT ROHR/COACHING CREW AND GOD BLESS NIGERIA.
The Prince of Monaco should act like a prince, not like a road-side market woman, gossiping up and down,
When Ikpeba scored that penalty in the 2000 Afcon final, and cluelessly put his hands on his head in despair, instead of confidently celebrating the penalty, the ref too kuku took one look at him, and agreed that the penalty was a miss.
Did anyone criticize him after that? Did anyone say he doesn’t have “steel” in himself for not believing in his own penalty goal? I recall most people rallied round him, and encouraged him.
Prince of Monaco, it is now your turn to rally round and encourage the current players. Yes, criticize them where necessary. But not destructively. And not everything has to be done thru the press. In this case, a phone call or even text message would have sufficed. Be a mentor to the players, not a nuisance.
Now you are talking. Too much of sępę is not good I guess lol.
You Oga Rohr fans are making ways to nail Mr. Ikpeba down, no way.
I think we are playing tomorrow right? You may not understand what Mr. Ikpeba meant by creativity now but when by the time our strikers needs someone to provide them ball to score goals, then you Oga Rohr followers and our world class coach himself will see clearly that you can’t use kerosene in the place of gasoline. Abomination ni yęn kę. Well, truth is bitter. God bless Nigeria!!!
To be honest, not so many midfield-combos in world football these days create goals with pomp. What you need is solidity.
A midfield comprising of Iwobi, Aribo and Ndidi is very solid. It is not difficult to break down and doesn’t concede possession easily. They drive the ball up the pitch purposefully and they do enough to get results or keep the team in the match.
Ndidi for one has improved tremendously and now contribes in creating goal scoring opportunities for Nigeria. Frank Onyeka is another solid midfielder whose movements help maintain the shape of the team. He brings balance and helps to recycle possession.
This combo does create goals as evident in games against Ukraine, Algeria (Afcon) and several other matches.
Can it be better? Absolutely. But our current crop of midfielders are by no means inadequate.
There are several names (like Nwakali) brandished about by fans as the ultimate midfield specimen. Obviously if Rohr feels such players will add value to his set up, he would extend invitation to them. For now, the German wizard is getting results with players he elects to work with.
I think Ikpeba is looking for “flair midfielders”. This we don’t have in abundance but flair players don’t necessarily win matches.
What you need is a midfield capable of driving results with resulute and steely displays while complementing other departments.
The midfielders Rohr tends to invite fit perfectly with what he wants to achieve at this time.
Nigeria have alot of tireless midfielders home and aways but coach and football authorities will ask them To pay 5000 dollars before they invite them.