9th February, 2013
Victor Moses has exploded on to the Africa Cup of Nations scene on his debut appearance, the pacey Chelsea winger making a huge contribution to Nigeria’s run to Sunday’s final.
But Moses would have been denied Nigeria’s services if fate and football had not intervened.
He had gone out to play football on the streets in the Northern Nigerian city of Kaduna, when riot broke out in February 2002 over the introduction of Sharia . Muslim zealots attacked Victor Moses home, killing his mother, Josephine and his father, Austin who was a missionary and had a church of his own. There was the belief that were Moses, then 11 years old at home on this bad day, he would not have been spared.
Football saved Moses and his relations decided to send him to England, where he lived in a foster home. He however continued to live his passion: playing football and making a career out of it.
Before he joined Chelsea, the European champions, he had featured for Crystal Palace and Wigan Athletic while also playing for England’s U16, U17, U19 and U21 sides. In 2011, Moses also began playing for Nigeria at the international level.
He had put the trauma of 2002 behind him, but he had not forgotten the killing of his parents by the religious zealots of the Islamic faith. Not forgetting made him to tell a Nigerian blog in 2011 that he was not ready to visit Kaduna, for now.
“No I’m not ready to visit Kaduna again and you know why. Oh no, no, I’m not going there,” Moses said.
Moses however still has fond memories of his parents, Austin and Josephine.
“Wherever they are at the moment, they should be proud of me, looking down, being proud,” Moses told British media last year.
Moses also still had fond memories of Kaduna, where he played football on the streets, just like the other lads, growing up. As he told the Guardian newspaper of London last year:
“No boots, just in your bare feet, a little ball got chucked in and we started playing” – and, also, the English after-school equivalent. He always wanted to be a professional footballer and he was spotted by Crystal Palace as he kicked a ball about in Norbury Park. They brought him into their academy and recommended him to Whitgift, the fee-paying school in Croydon where he could benefit from the superb facilities.
“He was a prodigy, utterly prolific in front of goal, a man among boys. He led the Whitgift under-14 team to the FA Youth Cup in 2005; they beat Grimsby school 5-0 in the final, with Moses scoring all five. Grimsby played in red shirts, which prompted the Grimsby Evening Telegraph into the first of many bible-based headlines for the player: “Holy Moses – wonder player parts red sea.”
“He made his Palace debut at 16 and was called up by England at every youth level. He won the Golden Boot at the European Under-17 Championship in 2007, in which England lost to Spain in the final, but his momentum was checked at Under-21 level. Stuart Pearce fielded him only once, against Uzbekistan in 2010, and the manager substituted him at half-time. Moses was not called up for the next game. “I played for England Under-16s, 17s, 18s, 19s, 20s and then 21s … then … I just decided to make the decision to play for Nigeria,” he says in the interview with London Guardian
Just imagine the probables for Nigerian football without Victor Moses! Shame on you zealots!
The Super Eagles were 11 minutes away in their closing group game from taking an early flight back to Lagos, only for the Stamford Bridge star to score the first of two penalties that would keep them in the competition.
That Moses-led 2-0 win over Ethiopia gave Nigeria the runners-up spot behind surprise table-toppers Burkina Faso.
Moses, who missed his side’s 1-1 opening draw with the Burkinabe because of a hamstring injury, could not have imagined then he would get another crack at taking on the Stallions in the final at Soccer City.
He entered the Nations Cup fray in the 1-1 draw with Zambia, being replaced late on after picking up another minor injury.
In the 2-1 quarter-final win over Ivory Coast and the 4-1 victory over Mali in Wednesday’s semi-final, Moses’ put in manful performances. Sharp and quick, he made a menace of himself, usually down the left flank.
Against Mali, he picked up yet another injury, having to come off on 52 minutes wth a left ankle problem this time, but all the signs are he will take his place on the pitch in Soweto.
“Lot of people asking about my injury. I’m having treatment and hopefully should be fine for the final” he posted on his twitter page.
After seeing off Mali, he wrote: “Absolutely buzzing amazing win bring on the final!”
Since Rafael Benitez arrived as manager of Chelsea, Moses has enjoyed a bigger role at Stamford Bridge, and he will be returning to west London on a high after his buoyant display in South Africa.
At one stage it looked as though Nigeria would miss out on his talents after he represented England at age-group levels.
But after a protracted processing of his change of international allegiance, he made his long-awaited debut as a late substitute in a 2013 Nations Cup qualifier away to Rwanda last February.
He was tentative at the start of his Eagles career, but underlined his class last October with two well-taken goals in another Nations Cup qualifier at home to Liberia.
And he hasn’t looked back since.
.updated with the Guardian interview of 14 September 2012