"It is easy enough to be pleasant, when life flows by like a song. But the man worthwhile is the one who can smile, when everything goes dead wrong. For the test of the heart is troubled and the smile that is worth the praises of earth is the smile that shines through tears."-Ella Wheeler Wilcox
With the European football now in full swing, the talking points have been many. The crushing defeat of Arsenal by their arch rivals, Manchester United still dominates most discussions about the EPL (English Premier League) with many already calling the time on Professor Arsene Wenger’s term at the Emirates. There is also small talk about the likely shift of power at the end of the season from Old Trafford to the Eastlands as the Blue half of Manchester have started showing the stuff champions are made of following their 5-1 thrashing of Tottenham Hotspurs amongst other impressive results.
Such conversations are not limited to the EPL, with Barcelona and Real Madrid hitting bull’s eye in their first games of the season. Barcelona cut Villarreal to pieces with a 5-0 thumping at the Camp Nou while Real Madrid thrashed Real Zaragoza 6-0.
If the morning dictates what the day portends, it is enough to believe that the La Liga would be a two-horse race this season. Already, alarm bells have started ringing with Villarreal’s president, Fernando Roig and his counterpart at Sevilla, Jose Maria del Nido quoted as saying that the growing financial gap between Barcelona and Real Madrid and the rest of La Liga would kill Spanish football!
“If they only want to have two matches (Real v Barca), let them have two matches, but this isn’t good for football,” Roig said in quotes reported by Reuters. “I give it three or four years. Either this changes or we kill Spanish football.” Del Nido added: “The two biggest clubs steal the television revenues from the other teams. It’s a league which only two teams can win, its third-world.”
So much for such recriminations.
We must pause and salute the rare courage of Nigeria’s Chelsea midfielder, John Mikel Obi in the face of the unfortunate kidnap of his father just before that EPL kickoff game against Stoke City on August 13. For some ten days, the elder Michael Obi was held in custody by his captors, who were demanding an outrageous sum of N600 billion as ransom.
Mikel’s trajectory at Chelsea is well documented: from being a bit-part player to a big-time player. As recent as mid-April, I bemoaned the fate of Mikel amidst reports that he was on his way out of Stamford Bridge after Coach Carlos Ancelotti was fired following a trophy-less season. Since his arrival at the London club in 2006, Mikel has worked under seven managers including Jose Mourinho; Avram Grant; Felipe Scolari; Guus Hiddink, Carlos Ancelotti and now, André Villa-Boas (AVB).
Expectedly, Mikel would have different story to tell under these coaches and it goes without saying that some of these challenges that he has had to grapple with might have threatened his sense of self-worth and personal happiness. Yet, his demeanour and resilience in the face of adversity occasioned by the kidnap of his father is worthy of commendation.
Margaret Moore in Japanese Secrets to Resilience cited Barbara Fredrickson as revealing that ‘positivity is the main mechanism of action for resilience.’
“What does it really mean to be optimistic?” asked Dr. Tamar Chansky, psychologist and author of the Freeing Your Child book series.
“Is optimism another unwise strategy that looks too good to be true, because it is? How can it be OK to see things in a positive light when we are inundated with bad news? Is it really safe to be an optimist amidst the doom and gloom?
“The short answer is, yes; it's not only safe, it's essential. Optimism combines having a positive vision of the future with the substantive steps to get there. The key is tuning in to how you are narrating the story of the events of your life. While we don't have control over the goings on, we do have control over how we interpret the dramatic events playing out in our own lives,” she added.
While many would argue that this is nothing more than a feminine approach rather than pragmatic, Mikel is simply redoubtable for being able to pull on his socks moments after the news of his father disappearance was broken to him.
"He has shown amazing mental toughness," Villas-Boas said of Mikel’s conduct after he posted a commanding performance against Stoke City. "People go through big disappointments and personal things in their lives and they can still be able to play because they feel well on the pitch to avoid the things that are running in their personal lives. They can focus on different things. Players react in different ways. Some players want straight away to go back to their families while others prefer to be like this and live on day by day, and not because they think they are distanced from where it is happening. It's their choice."
To all intents and purposes, the choice made by Mikel is one and the same argument made by Martin Roderick in the book, the work of professional football: a labour of love?
In chapter two of the book, Roderick stated about the ‘attitude to work in professional football’:“Much discussion of work attitudes and work innovations has centred upon the question of whether people generally are intrinsically or extrinsically orientated to their work. It is therefore frequently debated whether on the one hand, people work ‘just for the money’, or on the other hand, they work for self fulfilment.
“Footballers do see their work -at least initially-as a source of realization and as a site for significant social relations, it is not solely a context for the purpose of earning a living. The meanings attached to the term attitude in the context of professional football are diverse. It is clear that possessing a good ‘professional attitude’ is important for players, particularly in terms of career projection.”
I have always been interested in the sociology of sport and psychology of work. People have different ways of responding to harsh conditions and footballers are first of all, human beings. And I guess one of the questions that may have agitated the mind of Mikel when he first got the bad news was ‘how can I let go this opportunity when Villa-Boas, the new manager is showing interest in me?’
We can’t forget how much Mikel had suffered at Chelsea. His acrimonious transfer from Lyn Oslo which nearly brought down the root with Manchester United. There was a time he was axed from the first team by the Special One for his poor conduct on the field (after bagging some red cards) and off it (for lateness to training and drunk-driving). There was a time he was touted as the natural successor to former Chelsea’s stalwart, Claude Makelele at a time which coincided with the arrival of Scolari.
“I played that role (holding midfield) sometimes last season and hopefully, I'll have a long run in the team now," Mikel said during Chelsea’s pre-season in 2008. “It's something I've wanted - a run in the team - and I suppose Claude's departure has opened up that door for me, but I was playing in that role when I was in the team last season too. I was in and out of the team last season, but when I was given a chance under (former manager Jose) Mourinho before, I actually did okay in that holding role. I think I did very well under Mourinho and was playing regularly.
“Of course, when a new manager comes in everyone has to start afresh and roll up their sleeves. In Avram Grant's time, I was in and out of the side, and that was a bit frustrating, but it's what happens in football. This time, under the new boss, I will try to make it my position in the team each week.”
But he did not last the distance as he was used sparingly by Hiddink during his brief stint at Chelsea. He was equally one of the favourites initially under Ancelotti with the Italian declaring: “I have a lot of trust in Mikel; I think he can be the playmaker of this team. He is a young player, but has great quality, both technical and tactical.”
Even at that, Mikel only made 35 appearances for the Blues in 2009/2010 season when the team did the double by winning the Premier League and FA Cup. Last season was not different either, he featured in 37 matches in what could be regarded as his worst season since his arrival in 2006 when the club failed to win anything that eventually culminated in the sacking of Ancelotti.
During the summer, the rumour mill was humming with the possible departure of Mikel from Stamford Bridge, but the lad has shown that he still has many years ahead of him. Already, Mikel has played thrice in as many Premier League matches under Villa-Boas. Whether this is going to be on a long haul remains to be seen, but he deserves nothing but commendations for his resilience in the face of recent adversity.
The battle of Antananarivo
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| ENYEAMA AND YOBO |
The news alert Wednesday was that Madagascar had sacked its national team and replaced it with their Under-23 squad for tomorrow’s African Cup of Nations qualifier against the Super Eagles in Antananarivo.
According to some, ‘this has boosted the Super Eagles’ hope of catching up with Group B leader, Guinea.’ I wonder how, given the fact that the match has not been played at all? What gives people the impression that the Super Eagles would be at a disadvantage because they would be playing against Madagascar’s Under-23 team? What kind of audacity of hope is that, given the fact that the ‘underdogs’ from Madagascar too have some pride at stake?
We have complained time and again that the Super Eagles usually struggle against the so-called minors and how can we forget the fact that the Super Eagles were saved their blushes the last time against Ethiopia in Addis-Ababa? Here was a match that was played few days after the Super Eagles demolished Argentina 4-1 in Abuja, but for Joseph Yobo’s last minute equaliser, Nigeria’s chances of making it to the next African Cup of Nations to be hosted by Gabon & Equatorial Guinea could have all but ended by now.
Incidentally, the game in Antananarivo is a must-win for the Super Eagles consequently, the match should be regarded like a cup final. In a cup final, it is not out of place for the underdogs to beat the top dogs and the sooner Super Eagles come to grips with that the better for them.
Of course, we have passed through this same road before during a qualifying game for the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan against Ghana in Accra. Disenchanted with the performance of his professional players, the then Black Stars’ coach, Jones Attuquayefio virtually lined-up players from Hearts of Oak against the Super Eagles Armanda of professionals that included the like of Sunday Oliseh, Garba Lawal, Austin Jay-Jay Okocha, George Finidi, Nwankwo Kanu and Victor Agali amongst others.
Typical of Nigerians, three points were awarded the Super Eagles ahead of the game, but the wholly local-based Black Stars showed again that football matches were not played on the pages of newspapers! Final result: Ghana 0, Nigeria 0! I remember that game like yesterday as my friend, Ademola Olajire, who presently is Nigeria Football Federation’s Media Chief simply ‘boiled over’ against Coach Jo Bonfrere for failing to deploy his men. As usual, the excuse was that the Super Eagles could not cope with the hot weather in Accra.
Yet, the Super Eagles would be playing under an ‘unfavourable weather’ in Antananarivo in what according to Akinyemi Akinrujomu, the Americans refer to as ‘Rockies’- a high altitude zone that would leave so many players gasping for breath. So, what is the wisdom in counting the Super Eagles’ eggs before they are hatched? I hold my breath till tomorrow comes....
Raul really enjoy his Indian summer
He wore the famous jerseys of Spanish giants, Real Madrid with an uncommon élan and many have thought the end had come when he was forced out of the Bernabeau upon the arrival of a certain Jose Mourinho!
Yet, Raúl González has demonstrated some resilience that is worthy of emulation by anybody who wants to remain at the top of his career with his sterling performance for Schalke since departure from the Real’s radar.
He spent 16 years at Real and during this period, Raul was Real Madrid and vice versa. Some of the medals he won were distinguished: Real Madrid Record Goal Scorer (323 goals); Real Madrid Record Appearance Maker (741 games); Real Madrid Record Goal Scorer in La Liga (228 goals); Real Madrid Record Goal Scorer in UEFA Champions League: 66 goals and many more.
Yet, he had to leave ‘since he did not want to spend another season as third or fourth choice striker.’
But at ‘unfashionable’ Bundesliga side, Schalke 04, Raul has shown that there is life after all away from the Bernabeau. Last season, his goals nearly led Schalke to the Champions League Final Match until they were stopped in the semi-finals by Manchester United. This season, he has scored four goals in as many matches for Schalke and this again reinforces the wisdom that adversity is a fact of life, it can't be controlled. What we can control is how we react to it.’
