The expectation of poor performance will always hang over Papa Daniel like the sword of Damocles because most fans have already written him off.
Papa Daniel has 2 factors working against him: 1. he is home based, 2. he is an inactive home based player having spent recent weeks hawking his services to foreign suitors with resounding failure.
Recently, Benjamin Tanimu failed to win admiration of Super Eagles fans despite playing very well simply because he was based in Tanzania at the time.
Moving to division 3 in England, where he fails to play regularly, has further cemented the disconnect between Tanimu and the fan base.
It remains to be seen how Papa Daniel's Super Eagles career will pan out.
I have never seen him play to be honest. But those who saw him play for the homebase Super Eagles swear by the family silver and their pension that this Daniel is the real deal.
After the double-header demolition of Ghana in Chan qualifiers last year, ScoreNigeria wrote of Papa Daniel:
"The Niger Tornadoes midfielder was the biggest revelation for the CHAN Eagles over the two legs against Ghana.. A sweet left foot, energetic player who is very comfortable on the ball with a good passing range. He confirmed his class in Uyo."
So this kid is not a waste of space.
But, many fans will argue that the main Super Eagles is elite and should be reserved for elite players which Papa Daniel is not.
This bloc will contend until they go blue on the face that the best players for the main Super Eagles are solely based in Premier Leagues (at worst division 2s) in Europe.
I disagree.
I think any player anywhere can play for the Super Eagles so long as they possess the requisite skill, competency and capability. Desire and hunger are also valuable variables.
I don't know whether Papa Daniel will taste any action in these games. If he does, I don't see why he can't replicate the kind of performance that won him critical acclaim against Ghana across 2 legs.
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