Nigeria U17 left back Emmanuel Michael has been listed among the best 60 talents born in 2006 alongside the likes of Real Madrid bound Endrick and PSG fast rising midfielder Warren Zaïre-Emery, OwnGoalNigeria.comreports.
Michael distinguished himself at the U17 WAFU tournament where he had three goals and two assists from his role as a left back. He won four straight player of the match awards, he only failed to win the award in the final match.
17 year old Micheal, who plays for Simoiben Football Academy owned by the wife of Nigeria international Moses Simon was the only Nigerian picked in the list put together by the Guardian.
It is a regular on the site to pick players who they think will be among the top stars in football with a whole lot of the players mentioned in the past years going on to fulfill the expectations set for them.
This year Michael was handed a spot with a citation written by Maher Mezahi and it read thus:
“It is rare to see full-backs be so influential that almost all build-up play goes through them, but that’s how good Emmanuel Michael has been for the Nigerian youth national teams. At just 17 years old, he not only executes his defensive responsibilities with aplomb, but any set-piece within a 30 metre vicinity of the opposing goal will have him chomping at the bit to fire in a deadly free-kick. Beside the set-pieces, Michael’s most devastating asset lies in his ability to loft precision crosses to his strikers from the flanks, crafting ideal opportunities for attacks in close proximity to the goal”.
