Daily Independent (Lagos)
John Bamidele
20 November 2008
Lagos — Some call him Obagol, while others aptly refer to him as Obadrive. But among the Nigerian sport writers, Obafemi Martins is popularly referred to as "weapon of mass destruction."
In Italy, they call him the Ferrari of Nigerian Football. This, according to the Italian press, is just a neat way to describe how rapid the striker is. Not even, the dreaded Yashidi Yekini whose ferocious and powerful shots attracted so many descriptions among the Nigerian media had it as good as Martins.
Martin's pace and powerful play have earned him many accolades both locally and internationally, after making the first team at Internationale Milan, the Serie A outfit that gave him his break. Despite falling far below the required height for strikers in Europe, Martins has been a thorn in the flesh of defenders in Europe by consistently banging in vital goals for Newcastle United, where he currently plies his trade.
Genuinely two footed and with a terrific pace as well as being surprisingly strong in the air despite being 5ft 7inches, Obagoal has scored remarkable goals for club and country. His devastating form this season has been a source of joy to most people considering the sudden demise of his mother whom he referred to as his pillar.
His brace against Roy Keane tutored Sunderland is a confirmation of his readiness to compete for the top strikers award this season. Martins has since found the back of the opponents net five times. Harrison Jalla, President National Association of Nigerian Footballers (NANF), an organisation in charge of player's welfare describes Martins as a player of immense character and strong determination.
"Taking a look at the present crop of players in the Super Eagles right now, you would discover that Martins ranks as first among equals. He has been able to overcome the sudden demise of his mother who happens to be his strongest pillar to bang in goals for Newcastle United this season," Jalla said.
Before putting pen on paper for Newcastle in the summer of 2006, Arsenal football club also of England made an informal inquiry and discussed with him while Juventus football club, popularly referred to as the old lady of Italian football was interested too. Alarm was raised in Newcastle when it was revealed that Martins who signed for 10 million pounds from Inter Milan on a five year deal had a 13 million release clause on his contract.
When he joined the Toons in the summer of 2006, Martins was handed the NO 9 jersey, which was the exclusive preserve of Allan Shearer, England's legendary striker. Little wonder, he was handed a DVD containing Allan Shearer's 206 strikes for the Toons. Such is the premium placed on strikers of Martins' caliber.
Born in Lagos 24 years ago, Martins played for FC Ebiede before jetting out to play professional football for Reggiana and Inter Milan, both of Italy. In the summer of 2006, Martins joined English Premiership side, Newcastle United for whooping sum of 10 million pounds and made his debut for the premiership against Aston Villa. He was a member of Nigeria's Nations cup bronze medal winning team in 2006 and 2008.
Martins won the Confederation of Africa Footballer (CAF), young player of the year Award twice in 2003 and 2004.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 Daily Independent. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
