The UEFA Champions League has over the years provided a platform to showcase the talents of some great football legends, and one of the undoubted folk heroes from the competition is the Spanish air master, Carles Puyol Saforcada, popularly known as “The Wall”.
Many call him “strong”, “quick” and “mature” while some just label him as the wall between you and your glory because of his defence prowess. Puyol is one player that everybody loves to watch as he is regarded as one of the best defenders of his generation.
Puyol who was Barcelona’s captain from August 2004 until his retirement in 2014, has won 20 major titles, including six La Liga trophies and three Champions League titles.
Puyol has also won 100 caps for Spain and was part of the squads that won Euro 2008 and the 2010 World Cup.
It was recently announced that Puyol will be on the UEFA Champions League tour presented by Heineken® and here are the 5 meals Puyol just has to try when he comes to Nigeria:
- Jollof Rice – One of the major reasons we can’t agree with Ghanaians, the dish is a delicacy majorly across the Eastern and Western parts of Nigeria consisting of rice, tomato paste, palm oil, onions, salt, spices and peppers with optional ingredients vegetables, meats, or fish. Due to the tomato paste and typically used red palm oil, the dish is mainly red in colour.
- Fried Plantain (Dodo) – Dodo is a must for Puyol!! Fried plantain may be served as a snack, a starter or as a side dish to the main course, such as with Jollof rice, spicy barbecued meat, tomato stew or beans. It is a versatile meal made either salted or unsalted, and can be diced or fried whole.
- Pepper Soup – Ah, Nigerians and pepper! Can you separate us from it? There’s no way Puyol will come to Nigeria and not try the infamous soup! It is such a versatile and recreational recipe which can be prepared with different types of meat, fish, chicken and snail. Thus there is the Chicken Pepper Soup, the Catfish Pepper Soup popularly known as Point & Kill, the Goat Meat Pepper Soup, the Cow Foot Pepper Soup and the Assorted Beef Pepper Soup. e.t.c.
- Egusi Soup — Prepared with melon seeds, the Nigerian Egusi soup, is prepared by most tribes in Nigeria in many different ways. It is known as Miyan Gushi in Hausa, Ofe Egusi in Igbo and Efo Elegusi in Yoruba. It is mostly eaten with swallow meals such as Eba and pounded yam.
- Banga Soup — Banga is a palm fruit soup from Southern Niger Delta particularly the Urhobo ethnic group. Banga Soup is flavoured with Aidan fruit, Banga spice a stick of Oburunbebe, finely chopped onion, ground crayfish, Chili pepper or scotch bonnet, and salt. The soup is sometimes eaten with a cocoyam pudding called Kwacoco. Banga Soup is mostly prepared using fresh catfish dried/smoked fish or meat.
