Last week’s crowning of Nigeria’s Ademola Lookman as African Footballer of the Year by CAF, making him the sixth Nigerian player to receive the award, is very instructive and a lesson for many budding football talents, especially those living outside of their home country of origin.
Lookman is talented and level-headed. He is very professional in his approach to the game and from indications his parents’ influence in shaping his life has gone a long way to making him who he is.
I must confess that I have never had any close contact with him but from his conduct on and off the pitch, this is a young man who clearly has his head firmly on his shoulders.
It cannot be a mere coincidence that he has never been involved in any on and off the pitch skirmishes with anybody. It has also not been reported so far that has had any faceoff with his coaches and teammates.
That much too his father admitted after the awards when he said; “I’m so proud of him because he’s a very committed player. He’s very humble and doesn’t like too much publicity because he really wants to focus on his football and that is what has taken him to this level.”
Sports generally and discipline, are like Siamese twins. They cannot be separated if any player wants to play at the top and play for long..
When also viewed from the fact that Ademola’s career was nose-diving, a few years ago, after representing England at youth levels, this achievement remains a significant milestone.
He had a stellar season with Atalanta, scoring 11 goals and notching five assists, and also helped the Super Eagles reach the AFCON 2023 final.
One remarkable thing about the young man’s success in Morocco, is that his choice, like that of his compatriot, Victor Osimhen, the previous year, was without doubts. They were poles apart from the other contenders.
There was no dispute as their performances were so outstanding that all we did was just wait for the official confirmation of what we already knew.
Ademola’s rise to the top in his craft needs to be studied by some sports men and women who are always quick to think that choosing their host country over their country of origin is always a sure-fire route to success in their career. More often than not, it had indeed stifled the otherwise blooming career of these sportsmen.
In the 1980s, John Fashanu, a Nigerian born UK-based footballer was to play for Nigeria, but it was not to be and he eventually opted to play for England instead. He managed a few caps with England and that was it. But, if he had played for Nigeria, you can be sure that he would have had more caps and call ups and probably captained the then Green Eagles of Nigeria.
Whereas in the case of Fashanu, he cannot be completely blamed for this because he actually honoured one invitation but was not fielded. However, today many European teams are tying down several footballers of African descent with a game or two after which they are hardly called up again.
Although, this a personal decision to be made by the players, ultimately which would be in the better interests of the players? Play one or two games and be forgotten abroad or play for your native nation  and be given several opportunities, like the case of Lookman, to establish a place in the team and also secure better contract opportunities?
Born on October 20, 1997, in Wandsworth, London, England, Lookman began his youth career at Waterloo FC before joining Charlton Athletic’s academy and as a professional in the Charlton Athletic (2015-2017).
He made his professional debut for Charlton Athletic in 2015.
He moved to Everton in January 2017 for a reported £7.5 million.
He briefly left the English league on loan  for RB Leipzig in 2018.
He returned to England to play for Fulham on loan in 2019, before making the move permanent in 2020.
He again signed for Leicester City in August 2022.
Lookman joined Atalanta in 2022 on a four-year deal for a reported fee of around €15 million from German Bundesliga side RB Leipzig.
This move has been instrumental in transforming his career, and he has since become a key player for the club, helping them win the UEFA Europa League title where he scored three goals in the final.
His international career was looking secure with England after putting up a five-star performance at the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup and winning the tournament defeating Venezuela 1-0 in the final. Lookman scored three goals in the tournament, including two against Costa Rica in the last 16 and one goal against Italy in the semi-finals.
However, while struggling to establish himself as a senior team player, his international career appeared to be fluttering because he was struggling to match his outstanding performance for the Under 20s with his club career.
His decision to switch his allegiance to Nigeria in 2020, where he made his debut for the Super Eagles in a friendly match against Algeria in October 2020, was all the tonic his career needed to relaunch him into the mainstream of global football again.
Today, he is one of the highly sought after footballers in the world and the recognition as the best player on the continent too, is ensuring that Lookman is today now the beautiful bride of the global club football scene.
If Lookman had not taken the bold step to switch allegiance to Nigeria, he would have been left in the same International football wilderness like Tammy Abraham and many others.
What many of these foreign teams may never offer these players is the opportunity to have a second chance when they are out of favour.
Playing regularly gives every athlete the opportunity to build their confidence, consolidate and better understand their team mates. Giving a player one cap and if he struggles in his debut is dumped does not take cognizance of the fact that there are lots of factors that can cause a player not to be at his optimum in a given game.
Also, Lookman’s commitment to improving himself is all too obvious for all to see.
In all his International engagements for Nigeria, he has been a standout player. Even when the rest of the Super Eagles are disappointing, Lookman always puts in his very best performance and total commitment and dedication.
Here is wishing him more wins and who knows with a little more effort with his level headedness, he might, sooner than later, win the ballon d’or of world football.
