This beautiful 30-year-old queen of the Nigerian Delta and captain of the Nigerian senior women’s national team is perhaps the best goalkeeper in Africa, as evidenced by the African Women’s Championship that just concluded in South Africa, from October 31 to November 14, 2010.
What are the distinctive qualities that set the teams apart from their fellow goalkeepers?
There is a lot, but I will focus on five of these qualities that have made her not only the best, but the only goalkeeper in Africa to concede the fewest goals in a major tournament.
Calm down
Watching the captain and goalkeeper of the Nigerian Super Falcons during the just concluded African Women’s Championship in South Africa. She never exhibited any stage fright, but she remained calm and collected with perfect composition. Her calm eventually helped her teammates as her confidence grew as the tournament progressed towards the knockout stage.
experience
Precious Dede has the great honor of being one of the most experienced players on the current Super Falcons team. She has played in the 2003 and 2007 World Cups, as well as the 2000, 2004 and 2008 Olympic women’s soccer events. She has had a distinguished career playing for top Nigerian women’s clubs and also with the Arna- Bjørnar in Norway in the 2009 season.
aerial skills
One of the main characteristics that distinguishes a good goalkeeper from his teammates is the ability to deal with aerial balls coming from corner kicks, free kicks and other dead ball situations. This amazing lady also has a unique aerial ability that made her stand out above her contemporaries.
modesty
There are footballers who never reach the highest level of their career due to one problem or another. Chief among those problems is the issue of discipline on or off the field of play. It is a serious problem that has seen talented and budding stars focus on the national team. Precious Dede is a shining example of humility and simplicity. Her humble disposition makes her a favorite among friends and colleagues.
the ability to inspire your colleagues
As the captain of the Nigerian women’s senior team, Precious Dede has been an inspiration and extraordinary leader. A good goalkeeper conveys confidence and not fear to her teammates, and that is what Precious does with ease. Getting between the post and powering her line of defense with inspiring saves from point-blank range earned her the award for best goalkeeper at the 2010 African Women’s Championship.
