Nigerian female footballer, Asisat Lamina Oshoala has proven a point that where there is determination, commitment, hard work, focus etc., gender is not a barrier to personal achievement. Born on 9 October 1994, at Ikorodu, a Lagos sub-bob. Oshoala attended secondary school education at Aunty Ayo International School in Lagos and graduated in 2009.
Oshoala’s football carrier started with FC ROBO in Ikorodu, Lagos Nigeria, where she was between 2009-2013. She left Lagos for Port Harcourt, where she laced her boot for Rivers Angels between 2013-2014.
As it is said, a good product is worthy of export. This is typical with the athletically built Oshoala. The 2014 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup was the platform Oshoala needed to introduce herself to the female football fans globally. At the competition, she actually shone like an emerging star. She was the highest goal scorer with seven (7) goals in that edition and consequently named the best player of the tournament. After the 2014 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup, European football scouts had noticed Oshoala. The year 2015 was for Oshoala. By 23 January 2015, Oshoala had joined Liverpool Ladies. Records have it that Oshoala was the first female African footballer to play in the Women’s Super League when she signed for Liverpool.
A good product markets itself, as it is said, Oshoala’s stay in Liverpool was short-lived as, another equally good England female football team, Arsenal FC located her. January 2016 Liverpool reported that a transfer bid from Arsenal Ladies activated the release clause in Oshoala’s contract and that she was discussing personal terms with the London club services. Yes, she once again moved on to Arsenal in her football career.
There is a need to add this part of Oshoala becoming a celebrated female football to this write-up. It was Oshoala herself who narrated that her parents initially did not support her chosen career of being a footballer, especially when it comes to abandoning her academic pursuit in preference to playing football.
Oshoala became part of the Nigeria’s female national football team, the Super Falcons, she was named best player and second top goal-scorer with the female national team who won the 2014 African Women Championship.
Oshoala is ranked top amongst the Nigerian female professional footballers abroad, she currently plays for Chinese side Dalian Quanjian F.C. in the Chinese Women’s Super League as a forward.
Oshoala as a female professional footballer has won many awards. Below is the list of some of the awards she has won.
- Golden Ball award for best player and Golden Boot award for the top goal scorer (seven goals) at the 2014 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.
- Golden Ball award for best player and second top goal scorer (four goals) with the Super Falcons team who won the 2014 African Women’s Championship.
- GLO/CAF ‘2014 Female Footballer of The Year Award’.
- In September 2014 Oshoala was made a Member of the Order of the Niger by President of Nigeria Goodluck Jonathan.
- BBC Women’s Footballer of the Year 2015.
- Golden Boot award at the 2016 African Women Championship (AWCON) In Cameroon.
- GLO/CAF 2016 ‘Female Footballer of The Year Award’
Oshoala, a living example of “girls you can get to the top if you so desire”. No mountain is too high to climb as Oshoala did!
By Akor Reuben
