From being overlooked for long by national team selectors to being drafted as a late replacement for injured Wilfred Ndidi, Alhassan Yusuf has in two weeks emerged as a genuine star of the Super Eagles.
The Nigerian side must do all possible to get Alhassan Yusuf back playing again. No expense should be spared. We will need our best in future matches, especially against host Côte d'Ivoire. Our boys are good, but as Equatorial Guinea is demonstrating, we must not underestimate…
— Reno Omokri (@renoomokri) January 14, 2024
His AFCON debut against Equatorial Guinea may have only lasted 68 minutes after injury forced him out, but the 23-year-old Antwerp midfielder has been lavished with praise even on a day the Super Eagles again did not fly.
Super Eagles coach Jose Peseiro gushed: “Alhassan showed he deserves to play for the Super Eagles.”
@renoomokri said on X: “The Nigerian side must do all possible to get Alhassan Yusuf back playing again. No expense should be spared.
“We will need our best in future matches, especially against hosts Cote d’Ivoire.”
![](https://scorenigeria.com.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/NG23P5923.jpg)
“Alhassan Yusuf has easily been my best player in the game. Too bad he has to be substituted because of injury. Hope he recovers on time,” @elkrosmediahub saluted on X
“Alhassan Yusuf has a tremendous future ahead of him,” predicted @biolakazeem
His energetic performance earned him comparison with the great Ngolo Kante.
“Nigerian Kante!Alhassan Yusuf,” announced @the_smallie, while @jeff_kashh proclaimed: “This Alhassan Yusuf is giving off Kante vibes, be like antelope e dey everywhere.”
The former IFK Goteborg star got the Super Eagles training camp in Dubai talking on only his first training and when he finally made his long-awaited international debut against Guinea, the team were clear they have got a special present for the AFCON.
“He played with no fear,” remarked a top team official.
“He did very well for a player playing his first game with us.
“He has come to stay.”
![](https://scorenigeria.com.ng/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/alhassan-antwerp-pointing-1024x682.jpg)
Off the pitch, Super Eagles officials said the Kano-born Alhassan is humility personified.
“He is truly simple and easy going, he does not behave like a football star,” another impressed team official told SCORENigeria
Alhassan has made a big case that there are a lot more players outside the Super Eagles radar who also deserve their chance with the national team.
His guardian in over 10 years of rejection, setbacks and doubts has been Adam Mouktar Mohammed, who bought him a ticket to the 2017 Gothia Cup in Sweden when the team said he was not good enough.
That will set Alhassan on the journey that took another high on the hallowed pitch of the Alassane Quatarra Stadium on a hot, humid Sunday afternoon.
Yes, that’s Alhassan Yusuf. Ubiquitous midfielder with the flair of Ngolo Kante and Wilfred Ndidi combined. He’s the Lion and the Hyena of the Super Eagles midfiekd. Imagine the midfield controlled by Ndidi and Alhassan Yusuf: A deadly combination for World Cup qualifiers. The question remains why is Ndidi always injured just prior to crucial tournaments? Its becoming a routine that needs obvious investigation.
The football intelligence and abilities of Alhassn Yusuf should be a lesson for the NFF and Paseiro. There are more very good players left in the wilderness of non-invitation like central defender Igho Ogbu of Slava Prague, goalkeeper Jonathan Ayoola Rasheed, Akor Adams the second highest goal scored in French league 1, defenders Jordan Torunarigha and Kevin Akpoguna. The national team is only for the best collection of players at any given time not a committee of interest.
Green eagles players are all ornithologist specimens of identical plumage, never serious business wise,I mean on the field,their coach is a mediocre coach with professional poor results everything we play,but alas! he is still being paraded as the couch cos he has influential people at the corridor of power. Anyway , we can’t do better,we are a country with unserious leaders ,disgracing our outside image by their actions not only on the field of sports alone where quota system has to be exhibited but in everything that says Nigeria,the giant of Africa,a word is enough for the wise.