Should Maduka Okoye continue as Nigeria's Number One?

For all that there are numerous polarizing points in the Nigerian polity at the moment, the verdict on October’s pair of international friendlies was quite unanimous; for all intents and purposes, they provided no further insight on the state of the senior men’s national team.

If anything, the reviews veered toward the negative. While they were not competitive internationals, and the Super Eagles were forced to do without Wilfred Ndidi, Oghenekaro Etebo and Victor Osimhen, the supine, diffident performances against Algeria and Tunisia fell well below expectation.

One of the few crumbs of comfort came in the form of goalkeeper Maduka Okoye, who tripled his total number of international caps with assured showings in both matches. He even found occasion, in the midst of largely forgettable fare, to make some impressive saves to boot, and cannot be faulted for either of the two goals conceded.

It was a mighty source of relief, particularly considering the absences of Francis Uzoho and Daniel Akpeyi. The uncertainty between the sticks for the Super Eagles down the years has been copiously documented, but suddenly it appears there is relative bounty.

Of course, with a multiplicity of options comes an uncertainty of a different kind altogether. With Akpeyi returning for the qualifiers against Sierra Leone, Gernot Rohr suddenly has a new question to answer, one not centred on picking the least worst option.

So, should Okoye keep his spot as Nigeria’s No.1?

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There are two prisms through which to appraise the worth of a goalkeeper’s case: his own performance, and those of his competitors. Okoye has incumbency, of course, but he has to contend with challenges from previous first-choices Akpeyi and Ikechukwu Ezenwa, as well as a left-field contention from newbie Sebastian Osigwe.

On his own merits, the Sparta Rotterdam shot-stopper has been pretty impeccable in green and white. Since taking the field in the second-half of the 2019 friendly against Brazil, Okoye has set about quieting the misgivings of Nigeria, who considered his invitation from the German fourth-tier.

He has since moved to the Eredivisie, and has enjoyed a run of games as a starter for his struggling Dutch club side. More pertinently, however, he has appeared unfazed by the challenge of international football, unflappable under pressure and assured in his mien.

There is still a case against him, however. And it is that, for all that he has impressed, Sierra Leone – if he were selected – would mark his competitive debut, his three previous outings having come in friendlies. There is still something to be said for greater stakes and the effect they can have on the nerves; with something on the line, does Rohr really want to take the plunge with next to nothing by way of sample size?

By contrast, Akpeyi and Ezenwa have been tested in the fires of competitive international football, and were part of the squad to last year’s Africa Cup of Nations. However, both come with caveats that are impossible to ignore.

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Akpeyi has not kept a clean sheet for Nigeria in five games, and is coming off a bit of an injury lay-off.

While he has never overwhelmingly convinced, his form with Kaizer Chiefs, where he displaced club icon and long-time South Africa No.1 Itumeleng Khune, has meant he deservedly held the post following the unfortunate ACL injury suffered by Francis Uzoho in October 2019.

Ezenwa has also not convinced, despite being handed some daunting assignments, especially during the qualifiers for the 2018 World Cup. More pertinently however, he has not played football in any capacity since March, and as such it would be a major surprise were he to upturn the established order.

Osigwe is a curveball, having no experience whatsoever and playing out of the lowly Swiss top-flight. His invitation is almost certainly a sort of on-site assessment exercise.

With all the cards on the table, and knowing Rohr’s preference toward loyalty, there is a likelihood that he reinstalls Akpeyi. In truth, that would not be a travesty by any stretch. However, he copped a significant amount of flak for plucking Okoye out of relative obscurity in the first place, and will no doubt relish the chance to finally justify his leap of faith.

Egoism aside, the serenity that Okoye transmits, as well as a burgeoning relationship with the rest of the back four, suggests the German-born goalkeeper is both the likely and the ideal selection come this weekend.