Okorowanta. In order for me to know if I'll continue this argument, I need to ask you a question.

You sent me a link in which Sam Allardyce said that Jay Jay Okocha was better than Messi and Ronaldo. Do you believe that Okocha was better than Messi and Ronaldo? A simple yes or no will suffice.

@okorowanta

you need to calm down. this thread is about the African players that have made the most impact on world football.

And I believe the list is fair enough.

Jay Jay was an extremely skillfull footballer and I will forever admire how he morphed into a fine midfield captain, leader and talisman at Bolton. In fact, his exploits at Bolton is mostly responsible for the explosive growth of the EPL in Nigeria around the early 2000s.

But no matter how you look at it, Bolton Wanderers are fairly inconsequential in the grand scheme of world football.

Kolo Toure was part of the Arsenal's invincible team (arguably the most famous tittle winning team in EPL history). His brother Yaya was the driving force behind Manchester City's tittle winning team. Riyadh Mahrez was voted EPL player of the year in Leicester 's tittle winning season. Mo Salah has won it too. All these guys have had more impact on the EPL.

Okocha is very popular. And deservedly so, because skill and entertainment is a part of football. But he hasn't made as much impact as the likes of Toure, Salah and Co... not to talk of the Weahs, Drogbas and Eto'os

naptu2:


You said that I'm now "bringing Milla into the equation". That means that you do not even know what this thread is about. This thread is about Roger Milla and it is not about Okocha. You might need to go back to the first page and find out what the thread is about.

Again, nobody (apart from you) said that Okocha is not a great player. Once again, you need to go back to the first page and find out what this thread is about, because it appears that you just jumped into the thread on the last page. This thread is about impact and you need to go to the first page to find out what impact means.

It appears that you jumped into the last page and became angry. Calm down, reason properly and go to the first page. Make sure you read all the posts from the first to the last.

Besides, what else do you expect allardyce to say? He was Jay Jay's coach. Every coach would rate his own player above everyone else.

You will never see anything good in Okocha from your deductions.
No be only what else do you expect Allardyce to say!
Allardyce has coached over 700 players professionally including Lion Elhadji Diouf but still had to single out Jay Jay.
Dat one no reach for you to kpror and kack for one corner?
Abi stakeholders in world football respect your football opinion pass Allardyce own?
It doesn't matter if Ronaldo is better but Allardyce just wanted the world to know Jay Jay is a football god like few others.
Your hatred would still not stop the fact that Okocha is a legend of the game.

Aha! I thought so. Not worth responding to. No facts, reasons or logic, just emotions. Why would I even hate Okocha? Does that make sense?

Maybe it's a troll.

Anyway, on to better things.

Addendum

I was searching for this picture in order to add it to the section about Roger Milla, but I didn't find it until this morning.


The Italia 1990 FIFA Team of the Tournament.


Goalkeeper: Sergio Goycochea.

This was a very big deal. Goycochea was not Argentina's first choice goalkeeper, but he was in the team of the tournament. The first choice keeper, Nery Pumpido, broke his leg during Argentina's second game and Goycochea had to take over.

Remember also that this was a World Cup that was filled with great goalkeepers like Walter Zenga and Peter Shilton.


Defenders: Paolo Maldini, Franco Baresi and Andreas Brehme.

This was a Milanese defence line. It featured the Italians Maldini and Baresi, who both played for AC Milan and the German, Andy Brehme, who played for Inter Milan.

In my view, this reflected the strength of the Serie A at the time.


Midfielders: Paul Gascoigne, Diego Maradona, Lothar Mathaus and Dragan Stojkovich of Yugoslavia.


Attackers: Roger Milla, Salvatore "Toto" Schillaci and Jurgen Klinsmann

Milla and Schillacci were the main stories of the tournament. Schillacci ended up as the highest goal scorer and player of the tournament, while Roger Milla was joint 3rd highest goal scorer.


How many African players have made it into the FIFA team of a World Cup tournament?

OKorowanta:


The argument was Hadji won CAF player award because he featured both at France 98 and Burkina Faso '98 as a quarter finalist while Okocha was featured only at d world cup no thanks to d four year ban CAF handed Nigeria after we withdrew from South Africa 96 during Abacha's high handedness and trying to get back at Mandela for hitting us with some sanctions during the Ken Sarowiwa saga.
CAF later prove they got it all wrong wit the 98 awards wen they awarded Yaya Toure the Africa gong by virtue of a sterling performance with Man city jettisoning a Nations cup top performer under the year in review.
What was mustapha Hadji's price tag after the World Cup?
Statistics don't lie as Okocha went on to become the costliest African player after the world cup.
Because the CAF Awards organisers got it wrong by gifting Hadji the award doesn't change the fact that humans are mistakes prone.
Not all judgements are right in life.
You are just an Okocha hater.
The few times you wrote something nice about him was deliberate so it would seem like u are trying to balance d write up.

Don't mind the guy...the guys said players who had impact....then later says its the ones who won laurels...do u know that the last time okocha was in PSG...they all lined up and clapped for him-including zlatan....ronaldinho....and others acknowledge him as the greatest African...pochetino and aladyce say he is the greatest player they have seen from Africa...okocha is easily the best naija player ever...qed

Great job naptu2, you took a lot of time to put this together..It's very detailed and a good read too.

nice

MAYOWAAK:
A painstaking job you have done but there is an oversight in your account of Roger Milla. In 1976, IICC Shooting Stars of Ibadan prevented Tonerre Kalala from winning the African Cup Winners Cup consecutively. Milla was the pillar of the team.

The Segun Odegbami led IICC secured a 4 - 1 aggregate win over the Cameroonian side.

They won the previous year knocking out a Nigerian team along the way

femi4:
he was never at the World cup....he made his name only in Africa. You should be comparing Abedi and Stephen Keshi.

World cup achievement superceed any club competition achievement

George Weah didnt play at the world cup

For those who were campaigning for Jay Jay should think about it this way, does all of his skills have end products? He was part of the Frankfurt team that was relegated because his unnecessary dribbling in dangerous areas which cost the team goals. When you look top play-makers they deliver when it matters. Ivory Coasts Yusuf Fofana had the ultimate dribbling skills but lacked application George Weah on the hand doesn't dribble unnecessarily he applies it when it matters. At PSG he gets the ball from the defender he dribbles here or there and the they snatch the ball and goal. Reminds me of Denilson and Robinho who does 100s of leg overs without achieving anything.

Honestly I will put Yekini ahead of Kanu, because Yekini put Nigeria on the map. Abedi was one of the first African to reach the top 10 of the World player of the year

omar22:


George Weah didnt play at the world cup

Weah won a FIFA award. Being a World best is a great achievement

Abedi didnt win any international award, didn't play at the World stage