SportsAhmed Musa: Uncommon Bond With Kano Pillars

Ahmed Musa: Uncommon Bond With Kano Pillars

BEVERLY HILLS, April 19, (THEWILL) – Ahmed Musa, the captain of Nigeria’s senior men’s national football team, the Super Eagles, has the reputation and renown of a record-setter in his own rights. He has accomplished himself on the biggest stage of world football, the World Cup and not just on one occasion only, so that it is not misconstrued as a flash in the pan, but in two consecutive world cups, against Argentina first, and then, against Iceland.

The 171cm tall pacy forward stole the headlines across the sporting media recently with his decision to accept the proposition he received from Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, the governor of Kano State, and from Shehu Dikko, the chairman of the League Management Company (LMC, ) to use his current free-agent interval for a short stint in the local league in the country by rejoining his old domestic club, the Kano Pillars of the Nigerian Professional Football League (NPFL).

This stems from the fact that since the January transfer window shut this year and Musa failed in his attempted bid to secure a dream move to the English Premier League, the continuity of the 28-year-old’s professional football career had became mired in uncertainty to the point where some Nigerians protested his inclusion in the Super Eagles’ squad to contest the final matches of the qualifying series for the 2022 TOTAL African Cup of Nations (AFCON) at the end of last month.

The team’s German coach, Gernot Rohr, displaying an awareness of the furore his selection of the clubless Musa, who had been without club football since October last year when he left the Saudi Arabian side Al Nassr, explained the inclusion of Musa as a strategic decision and a technical morale booster for the three-time African champions and Group L leaders.

“Musa is our captain, and he is a part of the team though he won’t play because he has not been active, but we want to assist him to train and he will also help our team as we prepare for these two important matches,” Rohr explained.

This explanation was considered weak as it went against what Rohr himself considered as a criteria for joining the Super Eagles’ squad, which was reserved only for players who were actively engaged with club football. That was why Nigerians could not understand how it became a sufficient rationale to relegate in-form and fiery hot choices like Paul Onuachu, of Belgian side Genk, and Henry Onyekuru, of Turkish club Galatasaray, to the standby list, putting the hopes of qualification of a whole nation in jeopardy simply to satisfy the needs to assist a single player.

However, although Musa was allowed some game time in the last match of the series against the Crocodiles of Lesotho at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Lagos, attention quickly shifted from AFCON qualifiers to World Cup qualifiers. Nigeria is in Group C of the 2022 Qatar World Cup qualifying groupings under the Confederation of African Football (CAF) zone. The teams against whom the Super Eagles will clash for a berth in Qatar within that group include Cape Verde, Liberia and the Central African Republic.

To avoid another set of debates about including a clubless team captain in these qualifiers, which are due to commence in June, Musa had to consider options that will place him in good stead to continue his record setting performance in the Green-White-Green colours of the Super Eagles and keep him within the fitness levels to be in form.

Getting offers did not appear to be the problem for the 28-year-old. Reports confirm that even while attempting to get into the Premiership, especially at Sam Allardyce’s West Bromwich Albion, at the turn of the year, Musa mulled over enticing offers from elsewhere in England and from Russia, where he successfully won titles in the league and domestic cup, and from the Turkish Super Lig, which boasts of brilliant Nigerian players including Onyekuru at Galatasaray.

He held back from these offers as they did not meet his preference for the direction he intends to take on the next stage of his professional career. The third most capped Super Eagles’ player opted to see out this season, get into the transfer business when the European window opens and find a suitable club that meets his criteria for the advancement of his football goals.

However, it has never been to the advantage of a professional footballer, at any point in their career, how much more at their prime, to be away from active football outside an injury spell. Being away from competitive football involvement since October 2020 and staying that way until the jostle for Summer transfers begin in June across Europe, will not place Musa in the best light, especially at clubs are seeking to optimise value after the losses incurred due to the pandemic.

This rationale was behind why players seeking to feature for their countries in the World Cup qualifiers and earn a place of respect in their football clubs seized the advantage of the transfer window of January to find better playing opportunities elsewhere. A solid example of this is Jesse Lingard, the English professional footballer who now plays as a rejuvenated attacking midfielder for the English Premier League club West Ham United, on loan from Manchester United. He has shown such an improvement that they want him back at both Old Trafford and the Three Lions.

With the possibility of finding football teams to play for in his continent of choice in Europe temporarily shut and with time increasingly not on his side, Musa strongly considered the local feature proposition of the Kano State governor and the chairman of the LMC as a prospective opportunity to for a win-win deal. The prospect of playing in the local league will keep him in shape and increase his fitness levels for any opportunities that arise when the transfer season kicks off and also when Rohr makes his squad selection for the World Cup qualifiers.

On the side of the NPFL, the benefits are major. Having Musa join as an Elite player for the remainder of the 2020/2021 season comes with the potential to boost the image of the local league in the country itself, where the majority of football fans still demonstrate clear preference for football in Europe, and beyond, as fans of Musa’s, who follow the player’s progress across the globe, will be interested in finding out more about his latest club and league and follow the development as the season continues.

The implication is that there will be new eyes on the domestic league from football watchers in all the football clubs that Musa has played for since leaving Nigeria’s shores to grow his football career. From Dutch side VVV-Venlo to the Russian club CSKA Moscow, from the English side Leicester City to the Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr, there will be fans and media eyeballing the NPFL, seeking to find out more, desiring to follow the progress the pacy forward makes and bringing such global attention to the local league, which is a benefit that was behind the motivation to bring him to Kano Pillars.

For a player with the reputation of the Super Eagles’ captain to feature again at the club that brought him to the limelight, enabled him to reach great heights, as the top scorer of the 2009/2010 NPFL season with 18 goals, enough to draw the attention of suitors from abroad that was the springboard of his international career, it is an immense opportunity for incredible publicity and promotional potential that ought not to be frittered away by the LMC and the NPFL. The marketing materials have to scream this at every opportunity to break through to any other international Nigerian player who may have to consider such a step in future to know that he or she will be welcomed with open arms.

They must devise the best means to take the most benefit of the Elite nature of the deal that brought Musa back to the league and promote the league to the utmost as bearing the potential to attract talents such as the only Nigerian to have ever scored a brace in two consecutive World Cups, repeating his feat against Argentina in 2014 with a brace against Iceland in 2018. As eyes and cameras will follow Musa wherever he goes in the league, it is the time for the LMC and NPFL to present their best sides and outlook around him as that is how those who watch will adjudge the league to be.

It is a fact that Musa will not be the first high profile Super Eagles’ player to come home to the NPFL and feature in the colours of a home club. Many are quick to point at the example of Rashidi Yekini, one of Nigeria’s best ever strikers to play the game and the first ever to score at the World Cup, in Nigeria’s debut appearance. Although it is not to be conceived as a competition between both players, the difference with Musa’s case is that this is occurring at his prime, in the very height of his active days rather than when there has been age-enforced decline in the ability to reach peak performance on a regular basis in today’s demanding football scene.

This exact point, of Musa deciding to join Kano Pillars at this exact point of his football life was behind the positive reactions that greeted the confirmation from the club on Tuesday when the announcement was made formal and published on their website. Many believed that he could have simply jumped on any of the unsatisfactory offers from England, Russia and Turkey, as some other players could have done, but Musa held on for an ideal offer, deciding to use his free time to get fitter at home and improve the status of the local league with his addition as an Elite player.

For the player, a patriotic streak runs in his veins. When he spoke about his decision, it was obvious: “Whatever improves the image of Nigerian football is something that I strive to embark on and Kano Pillars holds a special place in my heart. It is the team that helped me become the professional footballer I am today, so this is more than just football but a very strong bond.”

The timely infusion of his pedigree in the league will go a long way to strengthen this bond. Kano Pillars are joint leaders of the NPFL on 36 points with Kwara United after 19 games. His return to the Sani Abacha Stadium of Kano Pillars will be influential for the local side to step up their entire performance and compete even more than they have done before to demonstrate that the addition of the Nigerian, who won three Russian Premier League titles, the Russian Cup and the Russian Super Cup can replicate his winning streak at home and has joined them for more than just the PR bonus that will accrue to the LMC.

It is hoped that more than just encourage interest from home and abroad in the local league and all the benefits that can be obtained from that alone, that he can become an example to football players, in particular, and to athletes of all stripes, in general, of Nigerian heritage to see the home front as a fertile ground for them to make an indelible difference in. These refer to sports people who have achieved heights abroad which can have a huge bearing back in Nigeria and make incredible difference back home should they make that decision to return and get involved in the domestic efforts to grow their sports.

It will be a win-win all over again and they will always have something to look back on and be proud for the difference they most certainly will make in the lives of those who will infinitely be inspired to become like them. It will be a hallmark for these stars, who can always return to their glorious careers abroad after creating an unforgettable experience for those that came in contact with them, the sports they were able to improve locally and the interest and attention that will come to the local sporting scene from the stratosphere of their influence abroad.

About the Author

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Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.

Jude Obafemi, THEWILLhttps://thewillnews.com
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.

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