Sanni Issa takes long and winding road in football

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By yakubu Salisu

The striker is hopeful that his match-winning form for the OFC minnows alerts the authorities in his homeland to his potential as he eyes an international place.

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Sanni Issa has taken the long and winding road in football but has finally won recognition thanks to his exploits for Auckland City at the Club World Cup.

The Nigerian was the man who scored the winning penalty for the Oceania Champions League holders all the way back in the play-off for the quarter-finals after holding Moghreb Tetouan scoreless for 120 minutes.

That victory was more than many in the Auckland camp expected with players and officials forced to change flights and reschedule visits to family around Europe.

After being narrowly defeated by San Lorenzo in the semi-finals, following a groundbreaking 1-0 win over African kings ES Setif, Issa and Auckland were at it again.

With the game tied at 1-1 after 90 minutes of the third-place playoff against Cruz Azul, it went to penalty kicks. It was all down to the Nigerian again. Up he strode to place the winning kick high into the net behind Jose Corona.

“It was really amazing,” Issa told Goal. “I can’t express how much I feel. I won’t forget this moment because it’s unbelievable. When I got the chance to make us win the game, that made me really happy.

“I am good at penalty kicks so I was really happy to score.”

That third-place finish capped an amazing set of games for Issa and Auckland, finishing third in a Fifa tournament for the first time and remaining unbeaten over 90 minutes against the reigning champions of Morocco, Asia and Africa.

Incredibly, Issa was only introduced to his team-mates after arriving in Morocco having signed for the club six days before they touched down in Rabat. He had been playing for Vanuatu side Amicale, who Auckland beat in the OFC Champions League final earlier this year.

“It was crazy,” he said. “The first time I’ve seen my team-mates was in Morocco. I didn’t meet them back in New Zealand. This is my first time training with them. So I was trying to adjust to their style, trying to know them better.”

Coach Ramon Tribulietx was keen to get the 23-year-old on board having recognised his talents in the Pacific tournament.

“I spent almost three years in Fiji and I spent one year in Vanuatu so when I had the call from Ramon it was really a shock that he wanted me to join Auckland City. To play in a Club World Cup game is something really big.”

Issa had previously played in Fiji for Ba, with whom he earned the OFC Champions League golden boot, after departing his native Nigeria and is now hoping his performances at the Club World Cup will put him in contention for a Super Eagles slot.

“No one knows me back home, especially my federation,” he said. “Maybe now they will know. That’s why I was trying to prove myself.

“I think this is the moment the world might know something about me.”

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