Etebo: Justifying His Tag As Nigeria's Nearest Thing To Paul Pogba

Oghenekaro Etebo's rise to prominence has been nothing short of sensational and it is fair to say he is treading the right path to stardom in relation to the case of Manchester United's midfield general, Paul Pogba.

The Frenchman has been one of the Red Devils best performers in the Premier League since re-joining for a then record breaking fee from Juventus and have also starred for France.

Pogba was the key man in 2016 as Les Bleus reached the Euro competition final on home soil and then, Nigerians would recall with distaste that it was the 24-years old's header that set Nigeria on course for elimination in the 2014 World Cup knockout phase in Brazil.

In the Super Eagles very own, Etebo is a player fast progressing the way Pogba did and, if he continues to push in the right direction, could become a global menace — the upcoming world cup very much in mind.

The numbers to back up this is hardly lacking as he has them in full — having finished as top scorer at the 2015 U-23 Africa Cup of Nations back then in Senegal, he became the first player since Bernd Nickel of then West Germany 46 years ago to bag four goals in a single game after he ruthlessly put Japan to the sword in a 5-4 win at the Olympics which they came out worse with the bronze.

Since then, his game has taken a revolutionary turn and though the eye for goal remain, it is particularly his graceful movement in the center of the park and domineering challenges from deep, coupled with his efficacy in breaking up play that has caught the eyes — it is no doubt his romanticized switch from Portugal to the famous La Liga has served him well.

Much has been said about Wilfred Ndidi with Leicester City but for Etebo judging by these auspicious signs, they could well be suggesting that the Super Eagles midfield dynamo would soon be named alongside super-duper stars like Pogba and the Russia World Cup would not come any earlier for things to shape up as such.

Emmanuel Chinaza