In the future, awards may be all footballers have to show for their time in the game. Especially to people who never saw them play. But what will that mean for one of Nigeria’s best-ever players who has never won the African Player of the Year award?

Why did he never win one? Was he unjustly denied in any year or were there simply better players in the years he could have won it? Was he a victim of circumstance or did the choices he made during his career mean he was never well-positioned for the award?