Nigeria stars have continued to make their mark in Europe after both Simeon Nwankwo and Alhassan Yusuf made history at the weekend in Italy and Sweden, respectively.
There were also some shining displays from compatriots Stephen Odey and Asisat Oshoala as teams stepped up preparation for the new season.
5.Asisat Oshoala
The African Player of the Year showed she has not lost her sharpness despite the long Coronavirus lockdown as she grabbed a second-half brace for Barcelona Ladies to beat Montpellier 3-0 in a friendly. Like last season, Oshoala will again taking some stopping in front of goal.
4.Stephen Odey
The former MFM striker opened his goals account for Genk ahead of the new season in Belgium, which kicks off this weekend. He scored in a friendly against promoted Ligue 1 side Lens. This will most certainly do a world of good for his self-belief after it looked like he may be shipped out on loan by Genk following the arrival of Cyriel Dessers.
3.Joe Aribo
The profile of the exciting midfielder has been boosted after he scooped two top awards – Young Player of the Year and Goal of Season – at Scottish club Rangers. A lot is expected of the 24-year-old Aribo as the new season in Scotland kicked off this past weekend. Will this be the season when Aribo’s Rangers topple perennial champions and local rivals Celtic?
2.Alhassan Yusuf
The former FC Hearts star has crowned a fine run at IFK Goteborg by winning his first major trophy in Europe – the Sweden Cup. The cup triumph was made more special as this was at the expense of rivals Malmo FF. ‘Hasse’ has been the superman for IFK Goteborg and has done enough to earn a move outside Sweden. That explains why many consider this triumph as a fitting send-off for the Sweden Young Player of the Year.
1.’Simy’ Nwankwo
The striker netted 20 goals and provided four assists to make histories on many fronts – he became the first African to finish as top scorer in professional football in Italy and he had also top-scored in the Portuguese second-tier league with Gil Vicente. Crotone’s survival back in the Italian top flight after two seasons in the lower division will depend a lot on the goals of the Super Eagles striker should they fight off interest from several bigger clubs.
