kai
nija people alway argues over irrelevant matter
Okocha is one of too 100 player in the world (according to pele) even ronaldinho confessed learning from him while okocha he was at PSG.
who can dribble the great oliver kan and two defenders and then mesmirise the entire diffence before slotting the ball pass then in style like okocha does. EHN?
why do nigerians forget too quickly okocha was nija captain until this year.
Comparin okocha and mikel is and insult on okocha and nigeria.Okocha as been consistently fantastic for 15yrs mikel is just 1 yr old in soccer.he is too ofensive compare to okocha he start his attack from the defence.
how many player have the physical build to look unpredictable in eyes of the defence and simple touches send the diffence in disarray? who ? .Please respect okochas GRIND
and if u doubt this go to this link and see a tip of okocha's iceberg.
respect

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=loz9W7DK8Pw

@olalekanhs,

This is why u fail examinations.
The comparison is Mikel Obi of today and Okocha at 19
Okocha did not dribble Oliver Khan when he was 19 neither did he captain Super Eagles at 19.
Ronaldinho didn't learn any skills from Okocha when Okocha was 19.
Always digest threads carefully before u post.

u are really a jackal
Did u know okocha at 19?
so how can u assume the question was when okocha was 19?
alway think b4 u type.
understood.

English Language seems to be ur problem.
Look at the subject of this thread and tell us what it means.
The author of the thread is trying to compare Mikel Obi at 19 Versus Okocha at 19.

Go back to kindergarten school and learn to comprehend before u spew out balderdash.
U should have digested other comments and the direction of the thread before posting.

well for me i think u shud not be comparing them coz they are different players with different skills, I think mikel pases good and okocha entartain well.

Let's bring this thread back. So where are the ones making the comparison?

Okay, my take:
People saying Obi is better because two big clubs were fighting over him must be on to somthing. Put these into perspective, when Okocha first came out how many African players played in EPL? How many African players played in the big leagues? I challenge any of you to tell me if you can count over ten African players in the big leagues back then! Again just because two clubs were fighting over him doesn't mean anything. Man U was only fighting with Chelsea because of the principles behind it. Do you guys think Sir Alex Ferguson would have acquired Obi if he was this good and around in 93? Hell no! Obi is just fortunate enough that things have changed from the '90s till present.

Obi @ 19 vs. Okocha @19

Obi won 2nd best player at the WYC - Okocha didn't attend any
Obi has vision - Okocha had/has also
Obi can not dribble - Okocha had/has in abundance
Obi played 3 games for SE(1-1-1) - Okocha's first 3 games(3-0-0)
Obi has yet to make an impression in EPL - Okocha was a terrorist in Germany
Obi played in ANC(bronze) - Okocha (gold, with style)
Obi played 0 WC - Okocha played. Was a terrorist!

Incomparable!!!!!!! Okacha is a LEGEND!
Mikel is good but Pa Jay for life abeg  ( Make sure that '19' is the actual age)

Personally I think Jay Jay is better , Mikel has 2 attributes going for him Analyse it yourself


OKOCHA MIKEL

Passing Accuracy 75 85

Dribbking Skills 99 (Even on a bad day) 50

Free kick Accuracy 65 40

Shot Accuracy 70 (on a good day) 50

Heading accuracy 30 30

Awareness 70 80





Based on this Analysis the winner is , OKOCHA
But seriously mikel needs to develop his game to even think of standing behing Jay jays shadow

No doubt about that, Okocha is a gret player but he is too wasteful and sometimes put his team in a tight corner. and do not comare him to Mikel let it be Okocha and Zidane and tell me who is the best, Mikel is far better than Okocha during his time because he is a good passer of the ball, okocha is just an entertainer and sometimes does that to win the heart of the fans.

No doubt about Mikel being a good passer of the ball and indeed one intelligent player but never the less Okocha is a more better player than Mikel at 19, admittedly Okocha is sometimes wasteful and Mikel in the other hand has proven to us number of times that he is indeed interested in chelsea's wealth and not to be a great player which is why he has been restricted to 3 0r 5mins playing time, i wonder how Mourinho will give him the chance to prove himself while ballack and lampard are in the squad, the fact remains that if Mikel continues to play for chelsea he will be the worst player Nigeria have ever produced because he is in the wilderness and for not making a wise choice OKOCHA IS BY FAR BETTER THAN MIKEL at 19! chikena

@lanredaman

where did u get ur analysis from

Let's not be myopic or disillusioned. Both players are very good and I think Mikel will end up a better player than Okocha. At 19 Mikel was/is better disciplined than Okocha. Okocha at that age cld dribble the whole pitch and still not score and will not pass the ball to his team mates whereas Mikel will use his vision and locate his team player in a vantage position to get the goal.At that tender age I think Okocha cldn't handle 2 qualities of a professional player:discipline and maturity.Okocha used his skill and flamboyance to attract pple to him whereas Mikel has hardly played good football and the whole world is talking about him.This is because pple see a rare gem that has not yet been cut yet still looks beautiful to behold.If you also analyze Mikel's disposition, countenance and professionalism during the Chelsea/Man U saga I can tell U that the kid is a true professional.No modern coach wld have tolerated the drama and calisthenics that Okocha demonstrated during those early years.Most of the guys in this forum have responded from a fan's point of view - we all love beautiful football.If you are a coach/administrator/business man I can bet U will pick Mikel ahead of Okocha at 19.Let's ask ourselves the question"If Okocha was 19 2day, will Chelsea & Man U fight for him?"At 19 Okocha was a loose cannon - He was left to do his thing.It is either his coaches didn't care or he just wasn't disciplined.It's very tempting to include an Okocha in your team but it doesn't always work for your team - Westerhof noticed this early enough. Also Okocha left everything too late. After the '98 world cup he was highly priced and moved to PSG this is when I want to begin to compare Okocha and Mikel (at Chelsea) because with all the skill Chelsea and Man U of 2day wld not have fought over an Okocha of then. At 25 Okocha was worth 17.5M pounds which is the highlight of his career and many still say it is a mistake PSG made them - Mikel isn't far behind at 19yrs with 16M pounds.4 years later Okocha signs for Bolton for less than 4M pounds where he played real football combining his skills 2 the general productivity of the team.At Bolton Aladyce wldn't have allowed him do his thing and besides his time was already winding up.I honestly think Okocha left it all 2 late.He is definitely the most skillful player I have ever seen but in the real sense of it it never translated to anything on the big stage. I think we should begin to see the picture like the whole world sees it - Okoch should have brought Nigeria a world footballer of the yr nomination. He shld have played for any of the best 10 teams in the world(his best were Frankfurt,fernabache,PSG,Bolton).He shld have beaten Samuel Eto to the African footballer of the yr in any of the past 2 yrs.Okocha 2 me is the greatest skill workshop ever.Ronaldinho does not measure to okocha in skill but is more intelligent than Okocha. The bottom line is serious players didn't respect him, the biggest managers didn't look his way and the serious/top awards all eluded him - that is a lot of food for thought. Okocha's case is what we call a fool at forty is a fool forever. He left it 2 late and when he became serious nobody took him serious but I respect this great player of our time. Check the url pasted for some okochamania
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=loz9W7DK8Pw&mode=related&search=

OKOCHA VS.MIKEL OBI @ 19


Na wa ooooh, Personally i would give it to Mikel Obi, Well open for critism about this and i will give my reasons,

We all have seen Mikel's exploits at 19 even if thats not his real age merely looking at the dude would tell you he shoouldnt be older than 21, Now to the Big gist okocha at 19 when we all claimed we knew him was that his real age??, i personally believe Okocha at 19 (foot-ball wise) was actually like 25-27 yrs old and even if at the end of the day Okocha wins the vote as been better at that age it won be any suprising to me cos ofcourse you no fit compare Agbalagba with Omode Now, shuoooooo


Abe make una bring another topic out jooooooooooooo

Mikel has a bright future

you don't compare men with the boys ,
pls kindly look for some one else to compare
with and not OKOCHA OF THE WORLD.

let us forget about that useless mikel abeg

This are very interesting views. Keep 'em coming

Mikel will end up becoming a better player than Okocha in terms of achievments. He has already played and won two presitigious cups for Chelsea in his first season playing an instrumental role on both occasions. Do the math and you'll know who is better. Another way you can look at it is that they're two different type of players and hence can't be compared.

dinozzo:

Mikel will end up becoming a better player than Okocha in terms of achievments. He has already played and won two presitigious cups for Chelsea in his first season playing an instrumental role on both occasions. Do the math and you'll know who is better. Another way you can look at it is that they're two different type of players and hence can't be compared.

i doubt if that is going to happen.

why do you say so?

Not greater

Ok , Pls , Read this , ~ Long but it stops this useless argument

"U can't compare an era with another era". U guys who are saying mikel obi @ 19 is better than okocha when he was 19~ Are crazy. U cannot do that. When okocha was 19 u same people saw him as a Soccer god ~ now dat some new young soccer player named (mikel obi) who has potential, comes out ~ then u now look back & say okocha back then was not that good. STOP Fooling yourselves ~ Okocha was a soccer god back then & he is still a soccer god after many many many years. Hope we can say that about Mikel after many years has pasted ! ! !
What u guys shud be discussing about is would Mikel obi's soccer career last has long has Okocha's did.
Don't get me wrong oh.
Mikel is a good young player right now, but he is not a gem stone. "You should be comparing Mikel Obi to his age mates now & present world wide~ not back to a past soccer era. It is an insult to Okocha, to see what the guy had 2 go thru, "think bout it when okocha was in his youth ~ African soccer players were not seen has good enough players to play aboard, but after many years have past & the world could now clearly see that it is not only europeans or southamericans that can play the game of football ~ now many great clubs want to get there hands on any young African player that has potential & that is the case with (John Mikel Obi). So for those of you guyz sayin why wasn't many clubs in pursiut of okocha in his youth, it is basically because Africans were being looked down upon has not having the ability 2 play @ the big boyz league.
And as for those who sayin okocha doing his teenage years wasn't serious or a team player ~ must not understand no 2 men are made equal ~ Okocha's style of playing ~ is totally different from John Mikel Obi.
Mikel knows that he can't dribble thru player like okocha can, thats why he had to have something to stand out, which his is passing ~ One thing that I really like about mikel is that he has a great vision than okocha. Again thats because they have different styles of playin. Has 4 okocha laughing when he shoots a ball totally over the cross bar or he does something stupid on the pitch & laughs bout it, is just simply is personality or ( do u want him to cry bout it, no one is perfect) ~ he is an easy going guy that just has fun while playing the game of football~ but no one can say Okocha doesn't give it is very best while playing.
Finally my view on both players:

Mikel looks to create for teammates first ~ Okocha can also create 4 teammates but that is his second choice, because if okocha shud get his legs on a ball during a game he his looking to disgrace that defend (& show what skills a Nigerian has). while Mikel can't ~ they have different playing styles and not dat one is better that the other on the pitch.

Okocha is a one on one player ~ Mikel will never be one ~ which is bad for a middle fielder or attacker

Passing pls~ not such a big deal ~ Anymore can learn how to pass a soccer ball ~ Okocha is a natural football player ~ Mikel is a created football player, thats why I fear that he might fade out in a couple of years, God pls help him.

And finally Okocha has proven he was not a bust or a one time thing ~
Mikel, its' yet to be know if he would full reach his potential of Greatness that everyone makes noice about.
So this 19yrs thing it is just a number ~ & am not sure how u can just compare 1 year to another year, have to at least compare 3 seasons of a full length soccer year, that is from like okocha's career from 93 to 96 & do the same 4 Mikel.~ Which is yet to be know, because the fact of the matter is JOHN MIKEL OBI has not yet played enough football too justify a comparison.

YOU can't compare a year to another year especially (Era's) ~ One year of football is not enough. U can compare a 1 Game to another game, but not 1 year of a soccer players career to another. Does not make sense ! ! !


Like there will only be one Michael Jordan ~ The same goes with Okocha ~ Pls. note that must football stars today are entertainers or great goal scorers (talkin bout attackers or midfielders) ~ John Mikel Obi is neither both ~

This is just my opinion ~ ~ ~ ~

Comparing both is an insult to Okocha.


Wat has Mikel achieved now?Indiscipline or wat


Okocha is a LEGEND

The issue of Okocha being a legend at least to us is not in question. The issue here I believe is the age at which both players are compared 19. Okocha has always being flambouyant and that alone does not win matches nor medals. You have got to be practical and aggressive. If Ronaldinho, with all his sublime skills, was not taking the action straight to the opponents defenders and delivering the killer passes and the goals then he would not have been were he is today. Mikel may not have the stupendous skill that Okocha has but he is more of a purposeful player in the field. I still remenber Westerhof moaning about how Okocha spends so muchn time dillydallying on the ball to the extent that it slowed the attack. No coach will want that and this day when fans are getting more partisan, I assure most fans would not like it either. Everybody wants his/her club to win.

My main point is dat u can't compare them at a certain age , it doesn't make sense if "Mikel @ 19 is better than okocha @ 19" , it is pointless ~ Age doesn't matter ~ what matter is that both players @ a young age (19) showed or is showing potential , & okocha reached his own potential & some might even argue dat he surpassed it (becoming one of Nigeria's best soccer player ever), "As for Mikel we can't tell yet" ~ but I hope he becomes a Great One too.

But Mikel definitely has to transfer 2 another club that would give he much playing time , which he needs to develop well @ the young age he is. Chelsea is not the right place ~ Too much big name stars @ the position he plays,

I think this is an interesting comparison, both mikel and okocha have tremendous talent. Okocha has impressed for both country and club throughout his illustrious career, and Mikel is looking to take on the role of talismanic figure for the super eagles.

As of when okocha was "19" i think it is plain obvious to all those who have been following football, that he was no where near as Big as Mikel is now. No doubt he was talented, but his game was more flashiness and less substance, so no surprise then that he did'nt capture the attention of The big clubs. Mikel on the other hand at 18 was being chased by the likes of ManUtd and Chelsea!

Okocha had great skills at 19 but lacked vision, which is just beautiful nonsense, he got better with time though after he incorporated composure and team-work to his game and at his best he was undoubtedtly a midfiel maestro. Yet, i dare to say that skill-wise he dose'nt really cast a colossal shadow over mikel.

Mikel shows maturity beyond his years on the field, he dose'nt dazzle much but he has that majic touch that can initiate a counter-attack, he has done it many times, he can also pass the ball with the same pin-point accuracy of the likes of pirlo, riquelme e.t.c and sometimes even at impossible angles like in the WC qualifier against South AF. 

What more?

Mikel can also play defensively as well as centre midfield, so far he has not enjoyed the liberty to roam about and move foward in chelsea, because of the other high profile options. but if u watch him play for the Super Eagles's you will be convinced about how much of a threat he can be.

Lastly i want to say that  I respect okocha alot, i believe he has put a benchmark by which we can measure who wears the no.10 for Nigeria.

mikel obi >? just dont like the guy

No doubt Mikel is a good playerand with age on his side he will get better. Haven't said that there can only be one okocha. Mikel still have a long way to go while Okocha is a Legend. www.becomeaprofootballstar.com

okocha don suffer

Mikelis obilis
was
a
media

hype

Hmmm.. I nova join nairaland when this thread was created.

I watched the 19 years old Okocha feature at the 1993 AYC and 1994 World Cup qualifiers games played in 1993.

I also watched 18/19 years Old Mikel play at the 2005 AYC and 2006 AFCON.

And I think the 19 years old Mikel was a better player. (The 19 years old Mikel is far better than the current 28/29 years old Mikel even). This is what is called career regression.

TheGoodJoe, Forgiveness, Tbaba123. This debate may interest you.