The then teenage goalkeeper, who hails from Akwa Ibom State, shot to prominence at the 2001 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Trinidad and Tobago where he was voted the best goalkeeper of the youth tournament. His dazzling performances between the sticks were hard to ignore and he grabbed the major headlines
The 2001 Trinidad and Tobago Eaglets depended very much on the breath taking saves by the goalkeeper to get to the finals of the Championship. Although the team lost the final match of the championship to France, few players distinguished themselves and Bassey Akpan was one of them.
What really endeared the goalkeeper to many Nigerians was his aerial prowess. Despite his modest height, he was always the first to pick the crosses and high balls within his territory. It was therefore not impossible for many to conclude that he would one day represent the country at the senior level.
On his return from the cadet Championship, the goalkeeper stayed focused on his career. Although he has not been able to secure a foreign club, Bassey has remained very consistent on the local scene. The relative ease with which he switches clubs in the domestic league is an indication that he is among the best goalkeepers around.
A product of Bright Stars soccer Academy, Akpan who hails from Eket Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State was born on August 6, 1984 and cut his teeth in the Nigerian premier League with Shooting Stars of Ibadan from 2002-2003.
He then moved to Bayelsa United where he did two years before leaving for Sunshine Stars of Akure. In the 2006-2007 football season, Akpan played for Kwara United. He again returned to Bayelsa United in 2009 where he currently plays in the domestic league.
Akpan football career can be described as successful, if securing a foreign club is not a yardstick to measure success in the sport. It is on record that Akpan played in the NIKE International Premier Cup in France where he got a bronze medal in 1998 and in the NIKE International Premier Cup in Nigeria, he got a silver medal. In the 1999 edition in Spain, he was voted the best goalkeeper of the tournament in the gold medal winning team. In 2001, he was in the Nigerian U-17 World Youth Championship squad that took place in Trinidad & Tobago that played and lost in the final game to earn a well-deserved silver medal, earning the best goalkeeper award of the tournament. In 2002, he played the African U-20 qualifiers; in 2003 was also in the national U-23 team squad that attempted the Olympic qualifiers.
Although he has not been able to break into the senior national team, the saying that a journey of a million miles usually start with a single step is applicable in his case. The goalkeeper who kept goal for Super Eagles Team B at the just concluded WAFU Nations Championship in Abeokuta-Ogun State performed creditably well and has since been invited to fight for shirt in the Super Eagles team to the 2010 World Cup.
Indications are strong that this may be Akpan’s moment in the sun because having played for Nigeria at virtually all the cadet levels, he has the prerequisite experience to vie with other goalkeepers for a shirt in the South Africa bound Super Eagles team.
He knows that another opportunity like this may not come his way again or in the near future and so he has to grab with two hands the opening handed him by Lagerback to make a mark at the highest level. Moments after he led Eagles Team B to victory in the WAFU Nations Championship, he did not mince words as he expressed readiness to contest with Vincent Enyeama, Austin Ejide, Dele Aiyenugba and Greg Etafia for a place in the 2010 World Cup team.
This is not an easy task by any consideration but Akpan like his other contemporaries invited to Super Eagles camp is banking on the assurance of fairness and impartial selection of players the new Super Eagles technical adviser has been preaching. If the Swede keeps to his words, the best players will be selected and those who think their long stay in the team will count in their favour might be disappointed. If this happens, Akpan who has been a recurring decimal in home groom national teams might just be there in South Africa representing Nigeria in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. If this comes to pass, he will surely attribute his achievement to nothing other than perseverance.
