Is The Time Right To Replace Nwabili With Okoye As Super Eagles Number 1?

With Maduka Okoye pulling up trees in the prestigious Italian league with stellar performances rewarded with a new contract by Udinese recently, it has ignited debate as to who should be the Super Eagles number one goalkeeper.

I ran into quite a lot of heated debates with some esteemed Super Eagles fans earlier in the year when I backed Francis Uzoho pre-afcon. Whilst I concede that Uzoho's attributes have somewhat depreciated recently, I maintain that he is not as bad as a loose formation made him look.

When we played a tighter formation in the Afcon, Nwabili looked impregnable, keeping clean-sheet after clean-sheet. Post-afcon though, it has been a different story.

Once the next coach, Finidi, adopted a loose formation. the once promontory Nwabili started leaking goals lock-stock-and-barrel: dropping 6 goals in just 4 games.

Now, I will have to come to the defense of Nwabili like I did to Uzoho. Applying the same principle, I will say Nwabili hasn't dropped the ball enough to be dropped as our number one. I don't care whether he plays in Tanzania, for Nigeria, he is commanding between the sticks, good with his distribution, nimble on his feet, competent with his interceptions and compelling in penalty kicks.

Well done to Okoye and more grease to his goalkeeping elbows. I have watched several of his games and can attest to his massive improvements as a top notch goalkeeper with top quality saves for Udinese.

But for Nigeria, left to me, we have to wait until Nwabili falters before Okoye can usurp him. And thus far, Nwabili hasn't put a glove wrong.

I am not an expert in judging goalkeeping abilities but, if you ask me, I think Nwabili carries an air of confidence and assurance that radiates with the fans and players around him.

Okoye, to me, still has psychological baggage and emotional issues with national team football brought about by misguided fans who rained insults at him some years back on social media (he is working on this issue though and has come out to say he is better).

As for Uzoho, I still rate him highly, even more highly than Okoye when it comes to mental and psychological resilience: core components of the confidence of a goalkeeper to do a good job in international football. My only issue with Uzoho is that is he not getting regular game-time in club football.

If he doesn't turn that situation around, I have no problem at all dropping him for another Nigeria goalkeeper playing week-in week-out in Rwanda or Tanzania due to the importance and benefits match-sharpness in reserve goalkeepers.

In all, I remain a huge fan of Okoye.

His decision to take a sabbatical from the Super Eagles to focus on improving himself in club football and cementing his position in Udinese's starting 11 is paying massive dividends.

He is a far refined goalkeeper with fabulous reflexes, exceptional aptitude and judgement - very great, enthralling and refreshing to watch him strut his stuff in Italy. But in his absence, Nwabili has established himself as a "safe pair of hands" for the Super Eagles. Playing in a less glamorous league should not been seen as an Achilles Heel of Nwabili.

So for me, our goalkeepers in order are: 1) Nwabili, 2) Okoye, 3) Any other goalkeeper playing week-in week-out in club football from Tanzania, Rwanda, any other leagues in world football, Nigeria or Uzoho if he does the needful.

The goalkeeping department of the Super Eagles is looking settled.