For 13 years, he bestrode the Nigerian football firmament like a colossus. From his maiden World Cup appearance in Japan in 2002 as a rookie, he evolved over the years into a leading figure in the senior national team, ultimately becoming the Captain and leader of a new generation of Super Eagles. The team’s success at the recently concluded African Cup of Nations (AFCON) in South Africa served as a befitting climax to Joseph Yobo’s career which has seen him playing top flight football in France, England and now Turkey. Yobo’s leadership and people management qualities were visibly instrumental to the Super Eagles’ victory at the competition.
At the AFCON, Yobo captained the Super Eagles mainly from the bench due to a nagging knee injury which limited him to substitute appearances. But that does not in any way diminish his contributions to the team over the years or detract from the yeoman job he did, along the other players, to ensure the nation’s qualification for the competition which may be his last. Over the years, Yobo has been a committed tem leader with exemplary conduct on and off the pitch.
Expectedly, following the AFCOn victory, commendations, encomiums and accolades have been pouring in from all quarters within and outside the country. Strangely, but interesting enough, Joseph Yobo has also received words of adulation and appreciation from an unusual quarter: from the beneficiaries of his kindness and caring nature. For those who do not know, Joseph Yobo is much more than a footballer. He is also a philanthropist and a great care giver. He is a long-standing supporter and sponsor of the less privileged and downtrodden. All through the AFCON, words of encouragement poured in for the Super Eagles, and especially, Joseph Yobo. “Please congratulate our captain for qualifying for the quarter final. I wish them victory again on Sunday. We thank God for His amazing favour granted to our Captain’s team today! May the grace abide until Yobo holds the trophy in triumph”. (Mrs. Awoyinfa, Proprietess, House of Mercy). And these wishes and prayers came to past.
Joseph Yobo is the Super Eagles captain with a caring and giving heart. Governments and Non-Governmental Organisations in Nigeria are known to have always made strident appeal to the rich and affluent people in Nigeria to complement their efforts to support the needy. How many of these rich people really heed this call and do the needful for the needy? Very few; one of these few is international football star, Joseph Yobo. If there is anything that is close to the heart of Super Eagles Captain, Joseph Yobo apart from playing football, it is spending time with and caring for children who are facing varying degree of challenges, ranging from medical to financial.
The high pitch preparations for the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) and other commitments could not deter Yobo from embarking on a charity project. There were numerous pressing family commitments but Yobo took time off his busy schedule to fulfill one of his heart’s desires by visiting three Hospices that cater to different select groups, albeit children, bearing a variety of gifts/donations that are relevant to their varied needs.
The Super Eagles Captain, spent quality time with the less privileged and put smile on their faces. Shortly before he travelled with the team to South Africa for the African Cup of Nations, Yobo and his team embarked on a humanitarian mission, visiting three charity homes in the Lagos metropolis in continuation of his innate selfless and philanthropic gestures. This would not be his first time of executing philanthropic projects which usually go un-reported because of his penchant for doing things quietly with little or no fuss. But this particular visit was not going to go unreported because of the timing and the personality of the man who stands like a rock of Gibraltar at the heart of the Super Eagles defence.
He started off the day with a visit to the Hearts of Gold Children’s Hospice at Surulere for orphans and children with disabilities. From there, he moved to Ebute Metta – the House of Mercy for destitute and child-beggars. He later rounded off with a final visit to Jakande area of Lekki – the Fair Life Africa Foundation for teenage boys rescued off the streets. He ended each visit with a private meeting with the founders.
Yobo was overwhelmed with the condition of the children and their individual circumstances. He empathised with the inmates of the Centres while recalling his own not-so-rosy childhood. Yobo praised the professionalism, commitment and dedication of the Managers of the Hospices. “I really appreciate what you are doing here and I am praying that God will reward all your efforts. I thank God for my life because I could have been one of these kids. This is my first time of coming here but it won’t be my last time”.
Yobo was very much at home with the kids. He knew and felt what they were going through. He also had humble beginnings and that has translated well over the years into his evidently humble nature. He was a ‘natural’ with the kids. He had such a good time playing with them while also highlighting the essence of striving for a bright future and becoming ‘somebody’ in life.
Throughout the visit and true to Yobo’s style, he continuously emphasized the fact that his visit was not about the donations or gifts but about spending quality time with the children, so that they too can have a sense of belonging and feel loved. ”It is always good to know that someone cares”, he said. His wife and son, who had accompanied him on previous similar visits elsewhere, were not available this time around due to various other engagements. Yobo noted that year 2012 was a wonderful year for his family. So, despite various charitable gestures covertly embarked upon during the year, this one is to appreciate God’s extreme faithfulness throughout the year and give back to the needy and helpless.
The varying nature of the primary target and purpose of the three chosen charities, best sum up the kind of person Joseph Yobo is; a patriotic Nigerian, philanthropic to the core. His non-tribalistic benevolent nature cuts across board. At the House of Mercy, he was particularly touched by the level of abject poverty that prevailed in that slum-like, but large community, wondering how the little kids in particular survived in such a downtrodden condition. He urged Nigerians to support the less privileged and the needy. ”Nothing is too small when you’re helping people”, he said.
Although, his charity visit had nothing to with football, Yobo could not escape the barrage of questions that sport journalists fired at him. This was understandable as the African Cup of Nations get underway in South Africa later in January with Yobo being the Captain of the Super Eagles team campaigning for honour in the competition. He summed it up thus: “Preparations are going on well for the Nations Cup.
Nothing is ever perfect, even in our marriage; we will have little challenges and difficulties here and there but we will handle them and we are going as far as we can in the competition. We are all ready and the technical crew is doing a good job.”
Yobo, who has been in the mainstream of the Super Eagles team since the 2002 World Cup in Japan/Korea, does appreciate being considered worthy enough for the national team. He said: “I am grateful to be part of the Nigerian national team. I thank God for my career; I have been in the national team now for over a decade. I am going to the Nations Cup fully prepared. I am leaving everything in the hands of God who has never failed me”.
Following his departure from Everton, the English Premiership team he played for for over six years, Yobo headed for Turkey and pitched his tent with Fernabache, a top Turkish club. A lot of Yobo’s fans and other Nigerians were apprehensive over the suitability of Turkey for his career and his national team position. But the ex-Sharks of Port Harcourt player has proved to be a bulwark in the heart of Fernabache’s defence. “I am happy in Fernabache; I am very much at home there. I also thank Everton for giving me the opportunity”, he said.
Joseph Yobo has been described by sports analysts as one of the most humble, disciplined and focused Super Eagles Captain in recent times. Never has any story been written of him having a face-off with club, national team managers or the Football Federation. “He is a player who is very much at peace with himself and others; he does not take for granted the opportunity to play for Nigeria; rather, he sees it as a rare privilege and he does everything to live up to expectation”, says a top Nigerian Football Federation official.
Yobo himself said as much: “We players should be grateful for what Nigeria has done for us. Nigeria is bigger than all of us. Players who have issues with the national team are the ones who usually create the problems for themselves and they should be able to fix it.”
To upcoming footballers and youths generally, he has this word of advice: “If you do not help yourself, nobody will help you. Anybody can become anything in life; just think and dream big. But, it is very important that you go to school. For those who cannot make it to school, it is not the end of the world. Fall back on something positive and give it your best shot; that is how to be successful in life”.