23rd June, 2010
There is no doubt that Super Eagles of Nigeria striker and Everton of England star, Yakubu Aiyegbeni is guilty of one of the worst misses in World Cup history, when he failed to convert a vital goal that could have seen the country beat South Korea and pave way for the Eaglesâ€
His miss left South Korea goalkeeper Jung Sung-ryong a relieved man. Even the Technical Adviser of the Nigerian team, Lars Lagerback described Yakubuâ€
The former coach of Swedenâ€
The soccer tactician, who was close to tears but gathered himself together, told PM Sports after the match that “I never knew Nigeria would be sent home this early, we were already thinking ahead of the next match because we were poised to do everything within our reach, but the miss by Yak was very bad. I donâ€
Captain Nwankwo Kanu and other players took a swipe at the former Portsmouth of England forward, saying he was trying to score a spectacular goal and at the end of the day he found not only himself as a disgrace but the team as well.
Kanu said the entire team were mad at him because he wasted a begging chance, which ought to have been a goal, saying the Eagles must take full responsibility for the ouster and apologise to Nigerians for causing them pains during in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
According to Nwankwo, “Aiyegbeniâ€
Former England international striker Alan Shearer also said on the BBC: “I reckon thatâ€
Meanwhile, coach of the Korean team, Huh Jung-moo was full of gratitude to Yakubu for giving his side the opportunity of moving on in the World Cup, saying that Yakubuâ€
According to him, “Despite the fact that we were down by a lone goal, we kept attacking because we know that Vincent Enyeama is good on one-one. I told my players to be shooting from any opportunity they had. We also knew that Nigerian goalie is not good at set pieces and that was what we practiced in training. So when we scored the goals, I knew we were going to win.
“As regards the miss by Yakubu, I want to say thank you! and thank you!! to the striker. It may be a tragedy to Nigerians, but to us it is a good thing and I would continue to remember Yakubu for this.â€
—Tunde Oyedele, Durban, South Africa