Stoke City of England midfielder, John Mikel Obi has stated delight with his appointment as a Nigerian youth ambassador by the sports minister, Sunday Akinlabi Dare, megasportsarena.com reports..
Mikel, who made top marks with Chelsea of England and captained Nigerian national team to many glorious outings, expressed gratitude with his new appointment, which he described as a huge honour for him, after he was unveiled in Lagos.
The ceremony, which took place at the secretariat of Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC) at Lagos National Stadium, was attended by the minister, alongside ministry officials, various sports stakeholders and journalists.
Dare said the appointment is aimed at providing fresh inspiration to young Nigerians to strive for excellence in various sporting endeavours and life in general, as he chronicled several feats achieved by ‘The Catalyst.’
He recounted how Mikel helped Nigeria win silver at both Holland 2005 FIFA U-20 World Cup and Beijing 2008 Olympic Games as well as gold at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa, after which he featured at the World Cup in 2014 and 2018.
The experienced midfielder, who was early in his career sought desperately by Manchester United of England, also captained Nigeria’s under-23 team, Olympic Eagles, to win bronze at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
During his days with Chelsea, Mikel won the English Premier League, English FA Cup, Carabao League Cup, UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League at the height of his illustrious career at club level, which he still continues actively with Stoke City.
The minister also described the former Middlesbrough of England, Tianjin Teda of China and Trabznspor of Turkey star as a role model whose lasting legacies in football development has continued to have positive impact on youths in the country.
Dare added: “It is it my pleasure to appoint you as Nigeria Youth Ambassador. It’s a new portfolio and your role as youth ambassador will be made known to Nigerians.
“It’s phenomenon to have somebody like him, he should be able to gather young men around and talk to them.
“Time will not permit me to say much about Mikel’s success as a footballer. He is our legend and a role model who has continued to impact the lives of youth positively.”
Mikel responded with a promise to work with the sports ministry to foster youth development in the country and he posited: “I feel highly honoured to be appointed as Youth Ambassador of this country, it is a great feeling.
“I am happy with this partnership and I promise to do my best to encourage and inspire the youths towards national development not just in football but in other sports like Basketball, Boxing among others.”
