I am ready to lead Super Eagles –Mikel Obi

By Esther Egbe

Super Eagles Captain, Mikel John Obi  has assured that he is ready to lead Nigeria well at the 2018 FIFA World Cup finals,National Daily learnt

Obi is also known as ‘General Mikel’ by the Nigerian senior team playing body and backroom staff for his brilliant hold–up play, vision and authority on the field, but more importantly for his leadership.

Russia 2018 is Obi’s second FIFA World Cup (though it would have been number four if head-to-head voodoo had not been employed for the 2006 qualifiers, and he had not missed the 2010 finals due to injury). But the midfield enforcer has played at every big stage of the game possible and is no longer awed by any occasion.

He started as a starry –eyed Eaglet with the Nigeria U17 in Finland in 2003, before dazzling at the U20 finals in The Netherlands two years later (where Nigeria came second behind Lionel Messi’s Argentina), and then led the U23 team to unexpected bronze medal at the Olympics in Brazil two years ago.

Obi added that “It is the FIFA World Cup – the biggest stage. We are here to prove ourselves. The attitude that saw us through a tough African qualifying group is still there, and looking at the boys, I have confidence that we will achieve our first objective of getting through the group stage.

Despite missing the friendlies against Poland and Serbia in March, Obi returned in force for the outings against England and Czech Republic, playing the full game in both.

In London, he presented gifts of headsets to his team mates, telling them the squad had no reason to play below-par at the finals with the NFF having provided everything it needed, including the team’s share of the FIFA World Cup money even before a ball is kicked in Russia.