CHARACTER BEFORE TALENT…..
This millennial may know precious little about the life and career of Etim Esin.
Etim Esin, Nigeria’s First Football Superbrat, So good he was named African Maradona
He hailed from Akwa Ibom state.
No Nigerian player was as good as Etim Esin not even Jay Jay Okocha.
“In 1989, we had Etim Esin and we relied so much on him. The Super Eagles team was built around him because he had so much skill and had so much to offer. So we said this is our “Diego Maradona” in Nigeria because he can do anything with the ball. It was like he was born with the ball.” – former Nigeria captain Late Stephen Keshi.
Early in the year 1985, having just graduated from high school a few months earlier, Etim was on the roster of hometown team Oron Stars and they were billed to play the great Calabar Rivers at the football pitch of the University of Calabar in a routine pre-season warm up game.
Rovers played in the top-flight and this was a game to help them prepare for the upcoming season but fate had other plans.
By the end of the game, there was only one name on the lips of everybody present and it was that of the stocky midfielder built like a tank: Etim Esin.
Officials of Calabar Rovers scrambled for his signature after the magic they had just watched. Unfazed that he was playing against men twice his age and size, Etim mesmerized the Rovers defence so much that he was forced to change his soccer pants three times as each one was torn to shred by the defenders who could not cope with his pace, strength and silky moves.
Etim was soon on his way to the big leagues with Calabar Rovers, a dream move for every aspiring footballer in the capital of the old Cross River state.
Etim’s romance with Rovers lasted just one season as a string of impressive performances attracted other clubs and he pitched his tent with the high-flying Flash Flamingoes of Benin which already had established stars like Samson Siasia, Waidi Akanni, etc.
Again, Etim shone like a million stars and emerged the leading goalscorer for the Benin side.
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In his third season in the Nigerian top-flight, Etim was again the beautiful bride courted by several suitors and he made a big money move to Iwuanyanwu Nationale of Owerri (now Heartland).
His performances did not go unnoticed by national team selectors and he was called up to the Flying Eagles team which was playing the African qualifiers of the FIFA U-20 World Cup slated for Chile in 1987.
A very good team became better with the inclusion of Etim and the Flying Eagles breezed through the African qualifiers to emerge winners of the Tessema Cup for African U-20 teams. Such was the quality of the team that pundits have argued that it was the best Flying Eagles team ever assembled in terms of talent.
It was not a coincidence that Etim Esin was nicknamed ‘African Maradona’ by the inimitable radio commentator, the late Ernest Okonkwo. He shared a striking resemblance with the Argentine superstar, even if their skin colours are different. Apart from both favouring the number 10 jersey, the two are both stockily-built with thick thighs and, more importantly, both possessed an incredible amount of talent which had fans eating out of their palms as they packed stadia wherever they played. As the indisputable best player in the world at the time, it was the ultimate compliment to be compared to Maradona.
However, like every star, Etim had his own tragic flaw. He was one player who didn’t care about rules and regulations and believed he could get away with anything because “I’m Etim Esin.” His lack of character started showing up.
With the World Cup ticket already in the bag and pre-tournament preparations already in top gear, Etim raised the blood pressure of millions of football-loving Nigerians when he sneaked out of the team’s training camp to go clubbing and ran into armed robbers in Surulere, Lagos who shot him in the thigh.
“I was young and foolish. I guess everything that happened at the time was due to youthful exuberance and my spirit of adventure” – Etim Esin.
Finally, Etim was declared fit by doctors and pronounced ready to join his teammates to prepare for the World Cup of which he played but psychologically down and Nigeria crashed out of the tournament.
He later travelled out to Belgium to begin his European career.
Etim set the Belgian league on fire with his impressive performances and a call-up to the senior national team, the Super Eagles, wasn’t long in coming in 1989.
On his Super Eagles debut, a World Cup qualifying game against Gabon in Enugu, Etim made the assist for the only goal of the game by Wole Odegbami.
At the end of the 1980s, Etim was easily the most popular Nigerian footballer home or abroad and great things were expected of him as he approached his 20s.
Unfortunately he was not to last too long in the national team as clouds were already gathering over his career as a result of off-the-pitch events in Belgium.
He had moved from Genk to Lokeren and then Lierse where his world came crashing when he was accused of rape and he had to flee Belgium in order to escape being jailed.
The rape saga put an end to Etim’s aspiration of appearing at the 1994 World Cup with Nigeria.
His end brought the reign of Jay Jay Okocha.
We may not have celebrated much of Jay Jay if Etim was there. His ordeal paved way for Jay Jay Okocha.
Who knows? he may end up being the only Nigerian to win the World best player award! But he failed,his bright future was truncated by youthful exuberance.
MORAL;
No matter how good you are in any thing you’re doing,if you lack character you won’t go far.
Character is a propelling force that pushes you to a greater dimension in life. It exhorts a man.
As a Youth, never allow youthful exuberance rob you the greatness in you.
#Character_before_talent
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This is a very pathetic story of a potentially good player who would have ruled the world of football but unfortunately, indiscipline ruined his career. What a lesson to learn from Etim’s ordeal