#2 Vincent Enyeama
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With Ligue 1 the highest level of domestic football he’s played, it’s perhaps not surprising to see that Enyeama has failed to receive the recognition he deserves. Having started out with the likes of Enyimba in Nigeria towards the start of his career, Enyeama eventually moved on to Hapoel Tel-Aviv where he would play over 100 games and even contribute nine goals during his tenure with the Israeli outfit.
Enyeama currently plies his trade in the French top flight in Lille and has been their number one for five years now. He’s not won countless Ligue 1 titles or UEFA Champions League crowns, but Enyeama has always lead as an example from the back, demonstrating superb leadership as well as a solid defensive knowledge of the game.
Whilst his performances in France should rank him highly, it’s his performances on the international stage which should mark him out from the rest.
In 2010, 2013 and 2014, Enyeama was the goalkeeper in the African Team of the Year award and in the second of those years, he’d captain his country to African Cup of Nations glory, keeping a clean sheet in the final against Burkina Faso.
One of his most noteworthy performances though has to be a faultless display in a 2010 World Cup group stage match against Argentina, during which Enyeama limited Argentina to a 1-0 win and picked up the MOTM award for the way he kept tabs on Lionel Messi for the night – anyone able to keep that man quiet deserves a medal.
