Modest Olisadebe looking for tips from Raul
Panathinaikos face Real Madrid in group C of the Champions League on Tuesday with their contender for European Footballer of the Year in fine form and looking to pick up a few tips from his opposite number Raul.
Panathinaikos face Real Madrid in group C of the Champions League on Tuesday with their contender for European Footballer of the Year in fine form and looking to pick up a few tips from his opposite number Raul.
Nigerian-born Polish international Emmanuel Olisadebe was one of the surprise names on the shortlist for France Football's Golden Ball and will line up against a trio of favourites for the prestigious prize in Raul, Zinedine Zidane and Luis Figo.
Panathinaikos have travelled to Spain in second place in group C after the first round of matches having been held to a goalless draw on their own ground by Porto.
They will be looking to snatch a point from leaders Real, who beat Sparta Prgaue 3-2 away in their first game, but know they face a tough task against a team of talented players.
Olisadebe, meanwhile, will be trying to pick up pointers from Raul after confessing his admiration for the Spaniard's gift for the unexpected.
"A player like Raul can score when no one expects him to. You don't see the goal coming but he picks the spot and puts it there."
"Most of the time you can see from the stands when a goal is coming but with Raul a lot of times that doesn't happen," he said.
Not that Olisadebe is short of goalscoring ideas. He was joint second-top scorer in the European World Cup qualifiers with eight goals as he helped Poland top their group aehad of Ukraine to secure a place in next year's finals.
He again proved his worth at club level on Saturday as he scored two vital goals to earn Panathinaikos a draw at title rivals Olympiakos.
But the former Polonia Warsaw striker was modest about his own standing in the European game after hearing the names on the Golden Ball shortlist.
"I would rank myself 49th out of 50," the 23-year-old told Greek daily To Vima. "I don't even know what it means to be number one or number two on that list. I'm just a good player," he said.
Olisadebe is the first Greek-based player to appear on the shortlist since former Olympiakos Piraeus star Zlatko Zahovic two years ago, but the Polish international has hinted that he won't stay in Greece forever.
"I would like to play in one of the strongest leagues in the world," he said.