Since she first broke onto the scene at the FIFA U20 World Cup in 2014, she has always been destined for greatness.
Oshoala’s is Africa’s greatest player
When she came into the spotlight, former Super Falcons star Perpetua Nwkowcha was arguably the best player African football had seen in the Women’s game.
But before Nkwocha retired a year later after the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2015, there was this belief that Oshoala would surpass her achievements.
Nkwocha had four CAF player of the year awards, more than any other player then. However, Oshoala had shown that she would break the record, having won the award in 2014.
Eight years later, the former Liverpool star has four more CAF player awards, more than any other player, including Nkwocha.
Oshoala finally gets her flowers
But while cemented her status as the GOAT in Africa, she never got recognition for her excellent performances beyond the continent.
In the 2019/2020 season, the Super Falcons had arguably the best year of her life, scoring 20 league goals in 19 matches to help Barcelona Femeni win the Spanish title.
Yet, she was overlooked by Ballon d’Or organisers and FIFA for the individual awards. The Nigerian star was not nominated for either award that year, which was quite surprising and annoying, given the season she had.
The following season, she was part of the Barcelona team that won the treble, scoring four goals in nine Champions League matches and nine in 11 league games.
Still, she was overlooked by France Football (Ballon d’Or organisers) and FIFA. At that point, it looked like Oshoala would never get the recognition she deserved from these award organisers. It also looked like a case of bias against her, even though she was playing for one of the biggest clubs in the world.
However, after years of waiting, Oshoala has now been rewarded for her performances. She is finally getting her flowers beyond Africa after she was nominated for this year’s Ballon d’Or award.
It is even more surprising that it came in a year she missed many games. Although Oshoala scored 19 league goals to finish as the top scorer in the Spanish League last season, she missed about four months of the campaign due to injuries.
Nonetheless, she earned a nomination for her performances when she was fit. It should have come earlier, but Oshoala is finally respected and celebrated beyond Africa.
Up next: The FIFA Best Award.
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