Benguela, Angola – When Nigerian defender Joseph Yobo was substituted against Benin in a Group C match at the Africa Cup of Nations, many Nigerians feared the worst. After all, the Premier League-based player had already come to Angola carrying a bit of an injury, but still played the first two matches for the Super Eagles.
A scan conducted in Luanda because the facilities in Benguela were not good enough, seemed to prove the skeptics right and Yobo was said to be out for the rest of the tournament.
Yobo then went missing from the Nigerian squad and officials said that he had returned to his English club Everton to seek permission to go to a specialist in France.
Against Zambia in the quarter-finals Yobo was suddenly back on the bench and although he did not play, he is being considered for Nigeria’s semi-final against Ghana in Luanda on Thursday, especially as his replacement Onyekachi Apam was red-carded against Zambia.
Nothing more was said about Yobo’s return until Wednesday afternoon, when a Nigerian church-goer said that the Everton defender had not been to Europe at all.
According to Emeka Igwe, Yobo was actually visiting a church called The Synagogue Church of All Nations.
Housed in a poor suburb in Lagos, the church is not without its controversy.
For years it has welcomed tens of thousands of visitors from throughout Africa who have traveled to Nigeria searching for miracles.
Among them was South African Springbok rugby player Jaco van der Westhuizen, who had been told by doctors that his rugby-playing days were over after rupturing his posterior cruciate ligament.
In desperation the rugby player flew to Lagos where, he said, his knee injury was miraculously healed by the founder of the church, pastor TB Joshua, through prayer.
Another sportsperson who turned to The Synagogue was Nigerian coach Shaidu Amodu, whose side was last year facing elimination from the World Cup.
With just one game to go the Super Eagles were trailing Tunisia by three points and had to travel to Kenya for their final game. The North Africans played their last game in Mozambique.
Amodu, who is a Muslim, said that nobody believed that Nigeria could qualify for the championship.
“At that time, the journey of the Super Eagles to 2010 was on a cliff hanger, as some would call it, and it was only a miracle that would make it work. Some even said it wont work,” but Amodu said that after intervention from Joshua the team qualified as they beat Kenya and the Tunisians lost.
Joshua was also involved with the Nigerian under-17 side that came second at last year’s under-17 world championships and with the Ghanaian under-20 side that won the World Youth Cup.
It is hardly surprising then, that Yobo turned to the church in Lagos when his Africa Cup of Nations campaign was in doubt.
Igwe, who is not a regular church-goer, said that when he went to the church, he saw Yobo arriving at the same time. “I waited to see what would happen. Sometime later, I saw Yobo walking out, a huge smile on his face. I was taken aback as he neared and it became all the clearer – he was no longer limping, but walking freely. ”
Igwe said that Yobo was accompanied by two members of the Nigerian under-17 side who play for a club belonging to the church, My People FC.
He said that even if some people were claiming that Yobo had received treatment in Europe, he had not done so, instead going to a church in Lagos last Friday.
Igwe said he believed that Yobo will hold a press conference later to tell the world how he had been healed.
When confronted by the allegations that Yobo had gone to church in Lagos and not for treatment in Europe as had originally been claimed, an official of the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF), who asked not to be named, said it was true.
“I am very surprised that the story is out. Yobo told me what had happened, so I can confirm that he went to Lagos.”
Blessed be the Holy Name of our Lord Jesus Christ who keep doing miracles over and over again and again. God’s power is amazing and Jesus never said goodbye. thank you prophet for allowing yourself to be used. the world should come out and give tesatimony, because our mentor always says” in your trial there is testimony and some one out there need to hear the testimony for his hope rise”.
WOW AND ….WOW!!!….OUR GOD IS AN AWESOME GOD MAKIN THE IMPOSSIBLE POSSIBLE!!!…Z BEST IS YET TO COME INDEED!!!
Where can we go from his presence? No where
No-one is like Jesus Christ, so trust him and read his word because all what the Bible says is true. There is no other word like the word of God, it has everything you want.
GLORY BE TO OUR HEAVENLY BABA FOR THE GREAT,AWESOME,WONDERFUL THINGS HE IS USING OUR GODSENT,HUMBLE SERVANT, PROPHET T.B.JOSHUA TO DO IN THIS OUR SINFUL GENERATION. MAY GOD CONTINUE TO BLESS,ANOINT,EMPOWER AND ENRICH YOU ABUNDANTLY TO CONTUE THE GREAT WORKS OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST,AMEN.MORE SPORTS MEN AND WOMEN WIIL BE ENCOURAGE AND INSPIRED BY THESE TESTIMONIES TO LOOK UNTO THE LORD FOR HEALING,DELIVERANCE/SALVATION. KEEP CHANGING LIVES,NATIONS AND THE WORLD WITH THE GOSPEL OF LORD JESU CHRIST.THE BEST IS YET TO COME TO THE WORLD THROUGH YOU MAN OF GOD PROPHET T.B. JOSHUA,THE SCOAN/EMMANUEL TEAMS/PARTNERS.
EMMANUEL!!!!!!!!!!EMMANUEL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!EMMANUEL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
JOHN MICHAEL SUDE , ABUJA,NIGERIA.
Jehovah God is great! What a great honour it is to be a living testimony of the great works of God. Brother Joseph we rejoice with you in this miracle. To everyone who is being blessed by the ministry of the man of God,Prophet T.B Joshua.let us not only be spectators,but be partners to this great ministry,SCOAN,Emmanuel Tv.EMMANUEL
Jehovah God is great! What a great previlege and honour it is to be a living testimony of the great works of God. Brother Joseph we rejoice with you in this miracle. To everyone who is being blessed by the ministry of the man of God,Prophet T.B Joshua.let us not only be spectators,but be partners to this great ministry,SCOAN,Emmanuel Tv.EMMANUEL!
OH! bless the Lord!
miracles do happen and they are real…….emmanuel…..
God is our reseaver.God bless TB jOSHUA. and also pray for me if you can send me annointed water. I live in Ethiopia . My name is wellansa Berhanu . Adress p.o.box 466 Dire Dawa Ethiopia.
God bless you.
The God we serve is an Awesome God! Let’s pray for our nation Nigeria for God to her. Nigeria needs God more than any other time now.
Amen.that miracle was for those who doubt the man of God.God bless Yabo for believing in his servant Prophet T B jOSHUA
Listening to his prophecies, he tell people the truth. Can he search my life for me?
Gloria inechealses! May His mercy & favour follow me
i pray that as God did it for the Nigeria international may God do my own for me with or without visiting or coming to Lagos cos i believe that with him all things is possible….. lord bless my memory
Sometimes this month our beloved prophet mentioned the former USA president Mr. Clinton in a prophesy touching his health. Can our American friends at the synagogue or one one of the branches contact him and share the anointed water! We love Bill and may God’s hand touch him, amen.
Yabo did it right and cheaply, he chose God’s healing[TB Joshua] and he was totally healed, instead of expensive and far away treatment which was not even assuring. God is still saying something!
God is the solution to every sickness and problem,He is our healer,deliverer ,protecter and we give him all the glory and honour for his servant the prophet .
Glory be to GOD for his wonderful miracle his doing in the life of people through PROPHET TB JOSHUA, I pray that GOD will continue to bless him, in JESUS NAME AMEN. Personally, i need prayer for me and my family,against generational curses, and i believe that with GOD all things are possible
Glory be to God!
I thank the Lord Jesus Christ for using his servant Prophet TB Joshua to set us free and showing us the way to the Lord.I pray to God to bless him and his family in Jesus’ name.
Emmanuel!!!!!
To God b the glory,honour n adoration 4 His marvelous works. May His name b praised 4ever n ever. Amen.
is Good to watch