When I was growing up, I had a dream of becoming a journalist, not the relatively popular New Times sports journalists that you all possibly know but just a newsman in whichever field or capacity. And in more than just one way or the other, I managed to achieve my childhood goal something to which I say thank you to my parents and to a large extent those people with whom I have worked closely in the past five or so years. Why did I choose journalism? Because you get to meet all sorts of people and also, it takes you places and I am gland to note that, so far I’ve managed to go some places and still going. The latest being Accra, the capital of Ghana where I’ll get the chance to watch final of the 26th Africa Cup of Nations how many get those sorts of chances? I call that living the dream! And further still, going for Africa’s most prestigious football showpiece may be an historic landmark to anyone but to watch my favorites team on the African team, Ghana live in action makes it even sweeter. Since the start of the tournament on January 20, I have stood by the Black Stars winning their record equaling fifth African title. A win for the hosts will definitely bail me out of a situation where I’ve had troubles to convince the many doubting Thomases about how good Ghana is. But failure to win the title (for the hosts) won’t be the end of the world after all; football is a beautiful game—its unpredictability makes it the world’ most famous sport, loved by billions of fans around the globe. Nigeria disappointed many, like they have always done in the past at major tournaments by exiting at the quarterfinal stage but I for one wasn’t surprised because for them, you always expect the unexpected. On paper, the Super Eagles, two-time African champions and Ivory Coast have probably the strongest squad with all their players featuring in top clubs in various European leagues. But when it comes to major tournaments Nigerian players just seem not to give a damn about giving their all for their country Nigerians back at home have in the past accused the players for lacking the passion to wear their national colors. And when you consider the way the Super Eagles approach games, you get the same impression (that they don’t care about ‘dying’ for their country’s cause) just like the Cameroonians or Egyptians and to some extend Ghanaians do. The last time I saw Nigeria players give their all for their country was 14 years ago when they actually won it African crown in Tunisia. Nigeria is a country with the most professional players and that evidence gives them the potential to be a contender for every Africa Cup of Nations but alas. Now the likes of Ivory Coast, Egypt, Ghana, Mali and even Guinea could find themselves toppling the Nigeria as Africa’s top footballing nation in not a distant future.Ends
