Haruna makes strong case for young Nigerian guns (Feature)

By Samm Audu Jun 13, 2010, 14:19 GMT

Johannesburg - As Lukman Haruna sees it, his World Cup debut against Argentina on Saturday made a good case for other young Nigerian players to break into the Super Eagles.

At 19, Haruna is the youngest player on Nigeria's 23-man World Cup squad. Just three years ago, he led Nigeria to victory in the FIFA Under-17 World Cup in South Korea.

The young midfielder for AS Monaco has been training with the national team since 2008 and made his senior debut against Sudan early that year. But he has gate-crashed into the Super Eagles only over the last three weeks with eye-catching displays in a couple of warm-up games.

He worked hard against Saudi Arabia, grabbed a face-saving equalizer against Colombia in London and looked a class act in central midfield in a 3-1 win over North Korea.

'At the beginning of last season, I didn't think I'd be playing at the World Cup. But I was still hopeful that as long as I was doing well at my club, I'd be considered for the World Cup,' he said.

'The white man (coach Lars Lagerback, a Swede) is someone who believes in a player's ability, and that's why I'm here in South Africa.'

Haruna started and finished against the star-studded Argentine team before 56,000 spectators at Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg.

'I wasn't under any pressure, even against a big team like Argentina, because I know how to play football,' Haruna said. 'We gave a good account of ourselves and will now focus on our next game, against Greece.'

Haruna can play either as a defensive or attacking midfielder, is a powerful tackler with decent technique and also packs a good shot.

He has held great promise since leading an exciting schoolboy team to win the 2007 FIFA Under-17 World Cup. His agent, John Ola Shittu, predicted then that Haruna would be the first from the team to make it in Europe.

He started 16 matches for Monaco last season, came off the bench seven times and scored three goals. It was a remarkable improvement from the previous season, when he started one game and was a substitute in three others.

'I worked my socks off in training, and the reward was that (Monaco coach) Guy Lacombe gave me my chance on the first team. That did my confidence a world of good,' he remarked.

Other promising players on the 2007 Under-17 squad were midfielder Rabiu Ibrahim, striker Macauley Chrisantus and defender Kingsley Udoh.

'I got my chance and took it. I hope they also get their chance and take it,' Haruna said.

But 'Apache,' as Haruna is known, has had his share of controversy. On the eve of the African Youth Championship om Rwanda, he gave a magazine interview accusing team-mates of being jealous of his achievements.

And his swagger and huge Afro hairstyle during the tournament - Nigeria barely finished third - met with disapproval from the Nigerian media.

His role model, Nigerian national team member Nwankwo Kanu, made a a trans-Atlantic phone call warning the youngster to shape up.

At last year's FIFA Under-20 World Cup in Egypt, Haruna was stripped of the team captaincy and red-carded in the first match. When he came back from suspension, he lost the ball against Germany, which broke away to score the late winner in a second-round match.

Nigeria have been shopping for a creative midfielder since Austin 'Jay Jay' Okocha quit in 2006. They may now have found one in the Monaco ace.

'As for Haruna, I'm not surprised at what he's achieved so far because he has been training with us since 2008,' said Everton striker Yakubu Aiyegbeni.

'In Angola (2010 Nations Cup), we had so many defensive midfielders and it was difficult for the strikers. We needed a creative midfielder. With what we've already seen, we've found one. He'll do more for the strikers.'

Against Argentina, Haruna was forced to play deep in Nigerian terrority to fend off wave after wave of attacks by the likes of Lionel Messi, Carlos Tevez and Gonzalo Higuain.

'It was a very difficult game. They attacked us so much, so I had to defend a lot,' he said.

Nigerian football all-time great Segun 'Mathematical' Odegbami predicted Haruna would emerge as his country's 'midfield general' beginning at this World Cup.

Haruna himself is very clear on what he wants to achieve. 'I wish to make a name in this game,' he said simply.