19 Jan 2003(Sun)

Tokyo Verdy have succeeded in raising a few eyebrows with the signing of Patrick Mboma.

And that was probably the whole point of the deal. After losing Edmundo at the end of last season, Verdy needed some star quality to bring in the fans.

Mboma will certainly do that, as he remains a hero in Japan after his time with Gamba Osaka in 1997 and 1998.

But will he, at 32 years old, provide value for money for Verdy and their major sponsor, Nippon TV?

This is a difficult question to answer, but I think the Verdy officials are being over-optimistic if they think they will get a full season out of the Cameroon center forward.

Mboma has not looked fully fit for a couple of seasons now.

As a subscriber to Sky-Perfect TV to follow the career of Hidetoshi Nakata, I noticed that Mboma was unable to make his mark in a poor Parma team last season.

In midseason, Mboma left Parma and joined Sunderland in the English Premier League.

I was interviewed by an English journalist at the time of the transfer and said I did not think Mboma was a good signing. Although at his peak, in Japan, he was a very explosive player, scoring some spectacular goals for Gamba, he was past his best and too slow for the pace of the English game.

At the World Cup, Mboma was substituted in all three Cameroon games, against the Republic of Ireland, Saudi Arabia and Germany.

He scored Cameroon s opening goal in a 1-1 draw against Ireland at Niigata, and was listed among the Indomitable Lions four outstanding players by FIFA, along with Rigobert Song, Samuel Etoo and Salomon Olembe.

So he proved he still has the star quality, but whether he can do it on a regular basis over a long season remains to be seen.

It is a bold move by Verdy, and one that is sure to attract a lot of media attention due to the high profile of the player in the J.League.

After all, Mboma was a massive hit during his time with Gamba. He scored 29 league goals in 34 appearances before leaving the club after the 1998 World Cup to join Cagliari in Italy.

His powerful left foot earned him the nickname of Boom Boom, and he went on to play a leading role for Cameroon and becoming African Footballer of the Year.

Verdy will need to protect Mboma during the year, and hope he can fill the gap left by the team leader Edmundo.

But he has a hard act to follow.

ends