Alhassan Yusuf was the pleasant midfield revelation for the Super Eagles under coach Jose Paseiro at the delayed 2023 AFCON in February in Cote d’Ivoire.
Yusuf got a long-overdue Super Eagles squad call-up as a result of injury to Wilfred Ndidi and he went on to shine like a million stars in the Group A opener against Equatorial Guinea.
Interestingly, Yusuf had a fixtures-packed season, making a whopping 42 appearances across all competitions with 2,479 minutes, even six appearances in the UEFA Champions League.
The former FC Hearts midfielder was also invited for the recent Super Eagles World Cup qualifiers against South Africa and Benin Republic, but got limited game time due to the return of Ndidi.
Alhassan Yusuf at the AFCON
Attacking wise, Alhassan Yusuf had three assists and just one goal, which was his first ever in the UEFA Champions League.
He also added to the number of disciplined Nigerian players as he only accrued six bookings (all yellows) in 42 games.
Overall, Alhassan enjoyed a decent season even though his Belgian club Antwerp lost both the Jupiler Pro League crown and the cup.
“I think my season was really good, from the Nations Cup to the Champions League, my season was really good,” said the tactically-shrewd midfielder, who picked his goal at home against FC Porto in the Champions League as his season highlight.
“The AFCON was good (experience), the love and support I got even when I got injured, it makes me want to give more for the country.”
The 23-year-old midfield grafter will now return to Antwerp, who will undergo major re-organisation after recent financial troubles and a disappointing defence of their league and cup double.
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