Kanu listed among world's top 48 footballing greats by Fifa's statistics organisation

FORMER Super Eagles skipper Nwankwo Kanu has been named among the 48 top footballing legends in the world by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS).

 

Now 39, Kanu played for the Super eagles between 1993 and 2011 and before that, had played for the U17 and U20 teams. He also captained the U23 team to Olympic gold in 1996, when Nigeria became the first African country ever to win an Olympic footballing gold, beating Argentina and Brazil along the way.

 

IFFHS released the first phase of the list which includes Brazilian greats Pele and Ronaldo da Lima. Notable Africans on the list include former world player of the year  George Weah, Roger Milla, Rabah Medjer, Muhammed Aboutrika, Mohmud El-Khatub and former Bafana Bafana captain Lucas Radebe.

 

Formed in 1984 with Fifa’s approval, IFFHS focuses on archiving football records, statistics and records of associations across the globe. Kanu was the last Nigerian to win the Confederation of African Football's African Footballer of the Year award in 1999.

 

Kanu won 86 caps and scored 13 goals for Nigeria and was the joint most capped Nigerian player of all-time alongside Muda Lawal, until Joseph Yobo and Vincent Enyeama later overtook him. Enjoying a top flight club career too, Kanu played for some of Europe's best clubs including Ajax, Inter Milan and Arsenal, Portsmouth and West Bromwich Albion.