Rivalry with Finidi Brought Out the Best in Me

He exudes as much energy off -field as he did on the field as a player, and was so fast that he was nicknamed 'Okada'. Barring some extra bit of weight, Tijani Babangida has added on, little has changed about the gifted winger. The former Super Eagles pla

While growing up, Tijani Babaginda did not get the support of his parents to become a footballer. They simply told him that footballers were never the pride of their parents. "Then, footballers were not rich. As a result, I didn't get the blessing of my parents to play football. However, God used me to open doors for my brothers and we eventually won their support.

“Back then, apart from the Fashanus (Justine and John) that were professional footballers in England, I cannot remember any Nigerian that was making money as a footballer, except that some make name while playing for the national team, while others played just for pride or as a hobby.

“During my time, there weren’t organized platforms to discover players. I couldn’t even afford a football boot or a trip to Lagos. My inspiration simply came from watching clips of the likes of Pelé and Segun Odegbami. I wanted to be like them. But now, football is about the money. My advice to all the boys is to first have an undying passion for the sport before honing their talent,” he said.

He admonished the present generation of players to always plan to be a step ahead of their fellow team mates. “That was my strategy all through my career. Also, don’t joke with your education. Even when you become big, you will need adequate academic knowledge to read your contracts and other legal documentations,” T.J as he is fondly called warned.

Many Nigerians will not forget in a hurry that sunny afternoon in the main bowl of the National Stadium, Lagos, when the Super Eagles confronted the Bafana Bafana in the semi-finals of the 2002 Africa Cup of Nations jointly hosted by Nigeria and Ghana. In the end, it was the Roda FC of Holland's diminutive winger, Babagida, who emerged the hero of the day.

"It was one game that made everybody to be scared even before the match day. You can feel the tension everywhere, from the players to the fans, the tension was very high and I thank God we overcame the South Africans at the end of the day. It was a special day for me because I scored the two goals that sank the Bafana Bafana. Special mention must also go to the then Super Eagles Coach Bonfere Jo for the tactics he adopted. He was quick to notice that Mark Fish, who was then the bedrock of the South Africans defence, was lacking in pace and he asked me to take him up using my speed. The result was the two quick goals I scored to subdue the threat of the South Africans," the former Ajax Amsterdam player recalled.

Babangida, who is now the Chairman of Taraba Football Club also berated football administrators for abandoning the traditional wing play, which, according to him, was the country’s strength to concentrate on midfield play, which he said was not suitable for Nigeria’s football. "In the days of Segun Odegbami, Adokie Amesiamaka, Friday Elaho, Humphrey Edobor, Finidi George, Emmanuel Amunike, Victor Ikpeba and I, opponents would always know they had a lot to do to curtail our speed from the wings. But that has since been overshadowed by bite-less midfield play," he said.

Reflecting on the rivalry in the Super Eagles during his time, most especially the one between him and Finidi George, the former Niger Tornadoes of Minna player said: "The rivalry brought out the best in every player then, knowing there was always someone that will take your shirt if you didn't live up to expectation. Though the rivalry was keen and competitive, we still operated under a very friendly atmosphere. For instance, I always looked up to Finidi for inspiration because I see him as a big brother and I knew I had a lot to learn from him. So, each time I came in to substitute him, I knew I had to be as great as Lionel Messi to surpass what he had done. He was one of the best Nigerian players because he was very brainy and calculative not to talk about his near perfect crosses delivery. So there was always pressure on anyone coming in to substitute him.

“On several occasions, I had to try as much as I could to play close to what he had already

done each time I came in as a replacement for him, because fans would be expecting me to do as much or even better than he had done. That was the kind of situation I found myself in the national team. But on the whole, they were great moments which I still cherish up till now," he noted.

Babangida, whose international chances in Eagles were partly limited due to the fact that he often found himself behind Finidi in the pecking order, however, played an important role in the team's Olympics triumph in Atlanta in 1996, a feat he said was the height of Nigerian football.

"I was in USA for the1994 World Cup, though I was not a registered player. I still recalled how highly the team was respected after the Mundial and how strong football nations all over the world were struggling to play friendly matches with the Super Eagles. But nothing can still be compared to winning the football event of the Atlanta Olympic Games. The memory will linger for as long as I live and in the minds of many Nigerians too," the football administrator said.

On the high and low moments of his career he said: "Being with the national team was always a pride. That I was with the team in the USA 1994 World Cup was a great moment for me. I will always remember the 1996 Atlanta Olympics with fond memories. However, losing to Cameroon in the final of the 2000 Africa Cup of Nations jointly hosted by Nigeria and Ghana at the National Stadium was my lowest moments as a footballer.”

Baba, as some of his fans love to call him, berated the present generation of players for lacking commitment, saying that in their days, they were very committed to the national team even if their various clubs had important matches. According to him, the national team comes first; but the reverse is the case now.

"It is very sad that the present crops of players are no longer committed to the nation. A player wåill say he is sick or injured when the national team is engaged in a crucial game. Few days later you will see the same player donning the shirt of his club. It is a very sad situation. During my days in Ajax, no matter the importance the game, my club was involved in, if it clashed with the time the Super Eagles was having a game, the club's game would always be secondary. That is why people still refer to and reflect on our days,’’ he said.

Babangida advised Nigerian footballers to always plan well for life after football, just as he advised the football authorities to be involved in organising a pension scheme for players. "Players should hold themselves responsible for anything that happens to them after their football career.

You don't have to hold anybody responsible for your adversity. That is why you have to plan for life after football. You have to take the initiative and get something to fall back on after leaving the game," he said.

T.J, whose new passion is football administration, working with academicals and managing players (home and abroad) says he is very comfortable. "Even before I quit the game I have prepared very well for life after football."