Nigerian Football
VICTOR MOSES LISTED AMONG TOP TEN RIGHT BACK IN THE WORLD
BY BOLAJI OKUNOLA.
Nigeria’s double award seeking star, Victor Moses has been ranked among the top 10 skilled right wing back in the world by America’s ESPN.
Victor Moses who is in contention for the 2017 CAF African Footballer of the Year as well as the BBC version of the award category is listed as number 10 by the American publication.
ESPN praising the emergence of right back as a key position in modern day football remarked that at one point, right-backs were considered the least skilled players on the pitch.
“But the next generation brings a boldness and unpredictability to the flank. Positional awareness, pinpoint crossing and breakneck pace separate the elite from the rest of the pack, as does the deft transition to playing as more advanced wing-backs in a 3-5-2 or 3-4-3”.
The remark easily fits into what Nigeria’s Victor Moses does under Antonio Conte in Chelsea which has led to the resurgence of the Nigerian star player.
According to ESPN, there were raised eyebrows aplenty when Victor Moses signed a new contract with Chelsea in 2015 shortly before setting off for a season loan with West Ham.
After all, he’d spent the past two seasons on loan at Liverpool and Stoke. It was like watching a nice saloon car sign away the best mileage of its life to an airport hire firm but when Antonio Conte arrived, he saw things he liked. Pace. Stamina. Courage. Versatility. And when he switched to a back three, Moses came into the team as a wing-back and never came out again. He signed another contract in March, 2017.
Listed ahead of him as the best right back player in the world is Dani Carvajal of Real Madrid. Next is Brazil’s Dani Alves who plays of Paris Saint Germain.
In the third position is England’s Kyle Walker, a player of Manchester City. Others are Antonio Valencia of Manchester United, Juanfran of Atletico Madrid, Fabinho of AS Monaco, Hector Belerin, Serge Aurier of Tottenham Hotspurs, and Nelson Semedo.