Nigeria and Arsenal FC forward, Alex Iwobi, has revealed he learned a lot from former Super Eagles midfield maestro, Jay Jay Okocha.
Iwobi, who joined Arsenal at age seven, is Okocha’s nephew and the 20-year-old says the ex-Nigerian number 10 is his role model.
Speaking in a FourFourTwo report, Iwobi says, “One flick he [Okocha] taught me took a month to learn. But when I did it it in a junior match I thought: ‘Wow, I can do it!’
“I’ve always looked at him as a role model, and he’s always told me to express myself. “The first shirt I ever owned was a Bolton shirt with my uncle’s name on the back. I wanted my hair like Ivan Campo’s at one point. My mum told me to calm down!”
The Nigerian played youth football for England but chose to play for the Super Eagles despite the Three Lions gunning for him.
He, eventually, donned Nigerian colours on 8 October 2015, replacing Ahmed Musa in the 57th minute of a 2–0 friendly defeat to DR Congo in Visé, Belgium.