He has been brilliant since he made a scoring debut in an international friendly game against Ukraine last September. But despite the brilliant start to his international future, Joe Aribo reveals he finds the No 10 jersey challenging given the history of people that have worn it in the past.
Although the Glasgow Rangers star has shown no signs of being jittery or overwhelmed with the pressure that comes with donning a number that players such as Austine ‘Jay-Jay’ Okocha, Wilson Oruma, Mikel Obi, to mention a few that have donned the iconic number 10, he admitted it has been challenging for him.
Aribo, who was born in England and was eligible to play for the Three Lions, opted to suit up for Nigeria instead and he made an instant impact. In the international friendly against Ukraine at the Dnipro Arena, he grabbed the headlines with the opening goal in a four-goal thriller.
He also made the headline when he scored a sublime goal against five-time World Cup champions, the Samba Boys of Brazil in an international that ended 1-1 at the Singapore Stadium, to further highlight his importance in the Super Eagles.
Despite the huge pressure on his shoulder, Aribo stated in a video posted on the NFF Youtube page that it is a big challenge wearing the number 10 jersey vacated by former Super Eagles captain John Mikel Obi.
“It’s a big challenge to take the number 10 jersey and it’s a challenge I’m willing to take and I intend to do what they (Mikel and Okocha) as number 10 have done in the past,”
“I just want to be able to show what I can do in a game.”
The Nigerian international is expected to also be in the spotlight as Rangers face Celtic in the Scottish Cup on Sunday.
