By Bunmi Ogunyale
The former Technical Director of the Nigeria Football Federation and two-time chief coach of the Super Eagles, Chief Adegboye Onigbinde, has extolled the virtues of the late Nigerian soccer legend, Teslim ‘Thunder’ Balogun, as the family marks his 49th memorial today, July 30 in Lagos.
The former FIFA and CAF Instructor, who won a silver medal for Nigeria at the 1984 African Nations Cup and the first Nigerian coach to take the Super Eagles to the FIFA World Cup at Korea/Japan 2002, stated that, Teslim Thunder Balogun’s heroics in Nigerian football, could easily be equated to the greatness ascribed to the great Bobby Moore in English football.
He said: “The greatest goal scored ever by any soccer player I have seen played was scored by ‘Thunder’ Balogun at the Olu Ibadan Stadium in 1968 in the match between the Nigerian national soccer team, the UK Tourists and England.”
Onigbinde stressed that: “During that match in 1968, the English players knowing his trickery clustered on him each time he got possession of the ball, to prevent him from wrecking havoc on their team.
“After frustrating him for most part of the game, “Thunder” planned his strategy to give the English national soccer team players the biggest shock of their lives. When he received a floating pass from a Nigerian teammate just outside the English penalty box, while still backing the goal post, only for him to flick the ball with a sensational drive with power behind the ball.