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Former Super Eagles of Nigeria and Bolton of England legend, Austin Jay Jay Okocha will thrill football fans from different parts of Lagos today, as the Premier League trophy tour makes a brief stop over at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Surulere.
It has been a tradition with MultiChoice to bring a Premier League legend to Nigeria to heighten the excitement of the football season. The trophy had been on parade in Lagos since October 25 and will return to England tomorrow. To make the exercise more exciting, the company decided to settle for Okocha, whose football artistry on the pitch remains a talking point in Europe and other parts of the world till date.
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Okocha, who is currently the chairman of Delta Football Association will be a special guest at SuperSport live studio commentary and analysis at the indoor Hall of Teslim Balogun Stadium for two English Premier League matches-Man United versus Tottenham at 12.30 pm and West Brom vs Man City at 3.00pm.
According to the General Manager, Supersport, Felix Awogu, the choice of Okocha for the EPL Trophy Tour in Lagos was as a result of track records in the game of football.
“First of all, let’s look at Lionel Messi. He has never won the World Cup, as well as Cristiano Ronaldo but I believe they are some of the greatest ambassadors of what football is all about today,” Awogu stated.
“If we were to bring the World Cup to Nigeria, these are the two players I am sure most people would have loved to see. Austin Okocha contributed a lot to the English Premier League before he left for Turkey. He brought a different dimension to football in England. His dribbling skills are today still revered in England, and they still talk about Jay Jay Okocha’s artistry on the football field. I think he is somebody who epitomises what football should be. He didn’t go for money, he went for entertainment and the fans till today, still see him as one of the greatest footballers that ever played for Bolton.
“To us, he is not just a Nigerian; he was also the captain of the Nigerian national team and a man that has given a lot to football in this country. If there was any one, he is the man that we should look for to celebrate the Premier League,” Awogu stated.
