Chris Maduewesi
Member
Former Super Eagles player Victor Ikpeba believes John Obi Mikel can still be named African Player of the year in the coming years.
Ikpeba who himself won the African player of the year award in 1998,said that Mikel should not give up as he has the quality to one day land the coveted award.
Last week,Mikel finished second behind Ivory Coast international Yaya Toure,who was named player of the year for a third consecutive time on the continent.
“He should not give up, he should continue to up his game and I believe he will win it soon,” Ikpeba was quoted as saying on Vanguard Sports.
“We Nigerians were disappointed because we have not won it in a while and the expectation was for Mikel to win it,” Ikpeba said.
“It was a close call, and I think Mikel’s stat in the EPL affected him. He did not have a great stat, and Yaya was on fire.
“Mikel had a great Nations Cup and Confederations Cup and he was ahead of Yaya there, but I think Yaya’s nomination as the only African for the Ballon d’Or also played a part.
“But I want to say congratulations to Mikel. He had been on top of his game these last two years and if he continues like this, he will certainly win it soon.”