On the pitch, Super Eagles of Nigeria won the Africa Cup of Nations on this day in 1994, beating Zambia 2-1 in the final in Tunisia.
Off the pitch, Efan Ekoku, a member of the all-conquering team, spoke with TheCable about his team mates of 21 years back.
THE FUNNIEST!
Well, the joker of the team was actually not a player but one of the coaches! A great coach named John Pagan. He coached in Nigeria but also in England, too. John was always playing jokes on the guys. I remember one occasion where he came to dinner early and replaced Finidi George’s meal with dog food! The rest of us knew and we had to play along. Finidi was furious when he found out… too late! That was John, though, always playing tricks.
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THE DJ!
That was definitely Daniel Amokachi! He was always playing music and getting the guys dancing in the dressing room.
MOST SKILFUL!
The most skillful was Austin Jay Jay Okocha – an amazing talent! He could do anything. Once in training, I saw him beat three guy sand then go back and beat them again just for fun. Great player!
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THE QUICKEST!
I remember Victor Ikpeba being pretty quick. I will say it was him.
THE TOUGHEST!
Austin Eguavoen was a tough guy! He wouldn’t hold back in training. And he was not just tough but a good footballer as well.
FUTURE MANAGER!
We always knew Stephen Keshi would be a manager. He was a great student of the game and understood the tactical side of things very well. A leader!
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WORST DRESSED!
I will say Amokachi, again! He was a young guy at the time and thought he was fashionable but some stuff were terrible!
BEST DRESSED!
The best dresser was me, of course! Well, I played in England and had access to the best fashion at the time. I had suits made in London by good tailors.
YOUR BEST MATE!
We were a close-knit team and that was one of the reasons for our success. But my best friend was Finidi George. Great guy and great footballer and we are still good friends now. We saw a lot of each other when he came to England to play.
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THE SQUAD!
Goalkeepers: Wilfred Agbonavbare, Alloy Agu, Peter Rufai
Defenders:Austin Eguavoen, Ben Iroha, Stephen Keshi, Uche Okafor, Uche Okechukwu, Isaac Semitoje, Nduka Ugbade
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Midfielders: Mutiu Adepoju, Edema Fuludu, Finidi George, Austin Okocha, Thompson Oliha, Sunday Oliseh
Forwards: Daniel Amokachi, Emmanuel Amuneke, Efan Ekoku, Victor Ikpeba, Samson Siasia, Rashidi Yekini
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Coach: Clemens Westerhof
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THE MAN EFAN!
Efangwu Goziem “Efan” Ekoku is an English-born former Nigeria striker.
The 6ft 2 in forward played for the Super Eagles of Nigeria at the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations in Tunisia, the USA ‘94 World Cup and the 1995 FIFA Confederations Cup in Saudi Arabia.
He was capped 20 times with Nigeria between 1994 and 1998, scoring six goals.
During his club career, Ekoku played for Merton FC, Sutton United, Bournemouth, Norwich City, Wimbledon, Grasshopper, Sheffield Wednesday and Dublin City.
In 2012, he was inducted into the Norwich City Hall of Fame.
The 48-year-old currently works as a commentator for Premier League Productions, which produces the world feed commentaries.
He was picked as match analyst for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, working for ESPN.
In 2013, he appeared as a pundit for the BBC’s coverage of the FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil.
Ekoku has obtained all his FA and UEFA coaching badges.
2 comments
Chai! That was our dream team. Naija, how the mighty have fallen.
Lovely article. A trip down memory lane
Great interview! Reminds me of the good old days. John Pagan – what a legend. Did you forget John’s nickname? The Geek from Speke. Take care my friend Efangwu.