‘Not a fluke! Okocha reveals who deserved to win the best goalkeeper award in the African Cup of Nations
The Chelsea goalkeeper was eventually named the best goalie for his heroics in the just concluded Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon, after he helped his nation beat Egypt 4-2 on penalties to seal
However, Many pundits and sports lovers questioned CAF decision to give the award to Mendy instead of Egypt’s Gabaski who also had a fine tournament.
However, Nigerian legend and former Bolton Wanderers star, Austine Jay-Jay Okocha, has revealed why the Chelsea goalkeeper merited the award.
Speaking on Supersports, the former Bolton captain said, “Ever since he signed for Chelsea, it’s like his potential just came out and we knew very little of him before now.
“Of course, it shows that when you are competing in a good league you keep improving. He’s shown us in this competition that it’s not a fluke that he’s the best goalkeeper in the world.
“I think that award must have been given to him because of the number of clean sheets he kept in this tournament. He kept five clean sheets in this tournament.
“He’s a championship winner for you if you don’t concede goals you give yourself the possibility of winning matches.
“And when it matters the most he saved that penalty to give his nation the opportunity to score the winner. For me, yes we’ve seen a lot of good goalkeepers in the tournament but deservingly, he’s the keeper of the tournament.”