23rd December, 2015
Taiwo Adelu
Not many people knew Odion Jude Ighalo when he was in Norway with Lyn, Udinese in Italy and Spain with Granada, but the glory and the stuff which the 26-year-old striker has in him could only begin to shine when he landed at Watford who are now in English Premier League (EPL).
Ighalo, who was discovered in a sprawling ghetto called Ajegunle (popularly known as AJ City) in Lagos, Nigeria, has been a source of trouble for defenders in the Premier League.
The former Prime FC and Julius Berger player scored his third brace of the season in a 3-0 win against Liverpool FC on Sunday at Vicarage Road, taking his season’s goals tally to 12 with many more expected to come as the EPL enters the New Year.
Interestingly, English tabloid, Daily Mail described the AJ City that produced Ighalo and other great Nigerian footballers “as the place that turns filth into gold. Many of the streets are littered with garbage, piled so high in some areas it reaches rooftops.
“Some houses are even built on top of great mounds. But out of its depths have emerged footballers who would go on to make waves in Europe. Ighalo is the latest.”
Some of the past heroes of Ajegunle include but not limited to Taribo West, a former player of Inter and AC Milan in the Italian Serie A, Emmanuel Amuneke, who played for Barcelona, and only last October won the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup for Nigeria in Chile, former Super Eagles’ captain, Nwankwo Kanu and Finidi George and a host of others.
Ighalo came to England not because of the love of money. If he did, according to him, he would have ended up in the Chinese league where he was tempted to sign money spinning deal, but he came to Watford in July 2014 from Italian outfit Udinese after spending a few seasons on loan with Granada in Spain, before he was given a permanent deal worth £10 million and a salary of around £50,000 per week in October of that year.
“I got a big money, crazy money offer to join a Chinese team. But I don’t think everything has to come down to money,” he said in a recent interview.
His goal scoring form helped Watford, who were in the Championship, gain promotion last season after eight years, and with the form he is now, there is no way the club won’t make Europa League team at the end of the season.
He made his debut for the English club in the first round of the Football League Cup at Stevenage on 12 August, 2014 and scored his first goal against Brentford on 30 September by tucking the ball home after his initial penalty was saved by David Button.
Watford with 17 matches played, sit on number 7 position with 24 goals, 12 scored by Ighalo. They are ahead of big clubs such as Liverpool (9th), Everton (10th), West Brom (13th) and champions Chelsea (15th).
“We are enjoying ourselves at the moment but still very focused on the task at hand.
“We just want to keep our heads up and take things without too much worry about anything else but making sure we play in the EPL next season,” he said on a Lagos sports radio in a recent chat.
Whenever Ighalo scored, he doesn’t usually like to take the full credit, but always see any goal he scored as effort of the whole team.
“It was a good thing that I scored, but it was really all about the team’s performance from start to finish,” he told SkySports after his side took Liverpool to the gallows last weekend.
With his flourishing partnership up front with Troy Deeney, Watford coach, Quique Sanchez Flores, completely ruled out the Nigerian star leaving the club in the January transfer window.
“I think Ighalo is completely clever, he chose five months ago the option to stay here with Watford.
“It’s very clever, he knew perfectly it was the best option for him. I think he’ll finish the season with Watford, after that anybody knows,” said coach Sanchez.
Ighalo’s goal scoring has also excited the former Eagles’ skipper, Kanu who said on his twitter handle that “Well done and keep banging the goals. Goal machine God bless you and we are proud of you#Ighalo #jude.”