A few weeks ago, most football fans around the world wouldn’t have heard of the name Sikiru Olatunbosun but that has changed following his spectacular goal against Enugu Rangers last weekend.
The goal itself was a combination of sheer brilliance, improvisation and ingenuity all rolled into one.
It was a match day 10 game at the Agege Stadium, Lagos, between the home side Mountain of Fire and Miracles (MFM) and reigning NPFL champions Rangers.
MFM made incursions into the Rangers area but their efforts failed to yield any fruit as Rangers held firm, but the deadlock would later be broken in spectacular fashion by Olatunbosun’s wonderful volley.
The build-up that led to the goal was like something out of a football video game.
Rangers midfielder Chinedu Udeagha lost the ball in the midfield to MFM left-back Julius Emiloju, who prodded the ball forward to the diminutive midfield maestro Chukwuka Onuwa.
Onuwa found space to lob the ball to Stephen Odey, who on noticing three Rangers defenders closing in on him, flicked the ball with the inside of his left boot to Olatunbosun.
The striker’s sixth sense with into gear.
In one swift movement, Olatunbosun contoured his body to meet the direction of the ball while flicking it over a visibly bamboozled Etim Matthew with his left foot, before taking a 180-degree turn and letting fly with the same left foot.
The ball went all of 20 yards, taking a swerve on the way and landing in the top right corner of the Rangers net.
Rangers goalkeeper Itodo Akor was transfixed, the stadium went into gasps and screams of amazement, and the MFM bench went haywire with celebration.
Olatunbosun’s goal is believed to have been listed by CNN as a contender for their Goal of the Week prize. The goal has been published on the websites of some of the world’s leading sports media: France’s L’Equipe called it ‘magnifique’; Spain’s El Mundo Deportivo named it El golazo de la jornada; Brazil’s Globo named it Candidato ao Puskas and Italy’s La Gazetta dello Sport called it remarkably, a ‘supergol’.
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