Football
Colin Udoh, Special to ESPN 7y

Wilfred Ndidi: Life on the Fox lane

Back in December, just before Wilfred Ndidi joined Leicester from Genk, an assertion on Twitter that he was better than N'Golo Kante was met with not a little derision on that social network.

Naturally, the reaction was no surprise, considering how much of an unknown quantity he was at the time.

Five months on, and half a season later, numbers - according to stat tracking service Squawka - are bearing out that bold statement.

Since making his Premier League debut, he has won the most aerial duels (33), won the most tackles (21) and made the second most interceptions (15) in the league.

Against Liverpool, he made a season-tying 9 tackles, level with Kante for the most in a single game.

Those are eye-catching numbers for a premier league rookie, and even more remarkable for one without the benefit of pre-season with his new club.

Ndidi, punching his phone as he shares a picture of a night out with his Belgian host family, looks up with some surprise as he contemplates the numbers

"No, I did not know about that," he said in response.

He may not have known, but those numbers, and his overall contribution to Leicester this season, won him the club's Young Player of the Year award. Again, it must be stressed, after barely half a season

"I'm very happy and honoured to receive such an award in my first season. But I didn't really put my mind in any personal award, as my main focus was us being in a safe position in the league." This constant reference to the collective is a common theme throughout the conversation.

Still in his formative years as a topflight footballer, the midfielder wears his humility like a natural cloak of distinction.

On the field, he is always available as a passing outlet to ease pressure on his team, or to hunt down a stray ball by a teammate, but primarily to just do his job, forming a near impregnable beanpole wall against any and all opposition.

Those acts of selfless dedication are a big part of the reason for the Foxes' good form down down the home stretch, which has seen them steady their previously floundering ship and keep their premier league status. But Ndidi shies away from taking any credit

"Nothing good comes easy, we worked very hard for it."

And he has worked just as hard as anyone. Coming from the Belgian league to the high intensity, high exposure Premier League could not have been easy.

But the 20-year-old, who was playing local football with Nath Boys FC not so long ago and watching the same league on television, has cracked it, and then some. His formula was pretty simple

"I didn't put too much expectation on myself. I just wanted to play. Playing in the premier league is a nice experience. There's so much pace and intensity." And tough too?

"Yes. All the teams are tough to play, I can't really specify one as the toughest I've played."

When it comes to players however, two opponents stand out for him, Manchester United striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Chelsea's Eden Hazard

"Zlatan is very strong and has so much experience. Hazard is very quick with amazing technique."

Ndidi did manage to come out of games against those two smelling of roses despite the difficulty they posed, and that experience will no doubt serve him well as he prepares for a sophomore season in England.

But there is one player to whom he owes some gratitude for his short time so far in England

"Ahmed Musa has helped me a lot. He has helped me settle, showed me some areas and always drives me to the airport when we have away games."

Ndidi would not be a true Nigerian if he did not round up with a word to The Man Upstairs

"I'm thankful to God for His Grace in this season and the rest of the seasons to come."

Many Nigerians will be just as thankful, especially if he can translate some of that form to the Super Eagles qualifying games, first the Nations Cup qualifier against South Africa in June, then the World Cup qualifier against Cameroon in August.

For now, it is enough to see that at 20, and 6 years younger than Kante, he is already challenging the man he replaced at Leicester.

If he stays on his current trajectory, he could well be the best in the world by the time he is 26. Now how about that for a bold statement.

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