Adebayo Adeleye made his long-awaited debut for the super eagles in an AFCON 2023 qualifier match against Sierra Leone.
The Super Eagles came out tops, winning 3-2 as Adebayo marshalled the defence in Moronvia.
Sportsintel.ng shares the views of Veteran sports journalist Kayode Ogundare on his performance on the day.
A goalkeeper is as good as his defence.
So before reaching a definite decision on how good or bad a goalie is, we should be focusing more on the back four.
How good, consistent, comfortable in their skins and compatible with one another are they?
How does the midfield formation help the defence play at their best?
What midfield combination do we play that burden rather than improve our defence?
How do the defenders relate with the goalkeeper and form a shield around him, sensing danger before it pops up?
How communicative with his defence and midfield is the new goalkeeper?
When asked, virtually all of the 1999 treble-winning Man United squad attributed their successes in large part to the vocal attribute of Peter Schmeichel.
Adebayo Adeleye will inspire confidence if he can spur his defenders and command presence in his area.
The goalkeeper is not the tallest of goalkeepers, yet he’s an inch taller than Lemmy Isa, the 1987 Golden Eaglets goalkeeper.
To beat Isa, you needed something extra because of his commanding presence. Adebayo Adeleye can get there too.
The Verdict On Adebayo Adeleye
I will not judge Adeleye on the basis of just one game, but I think he was assured in goal despite conceding two goals on his debut.
We have a long way to go and many more keepers to test before we get back to the days of the legendary Dodo Mayana Peter Rufai in goal with Alloy Agu, the late Willy Agbonavbare and Ike Shorunmu as backups.