Football, like every aspect of our lives, hit a massive snag in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
For almost four months, there were no football actions across the world as we came to grips with the effect of the COVID-19-the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
Even when football returned, there were played without fans, a huge miss considering what fans bring to a football game.
Despite these challenges, the show went on with Nigerian stars playing their part in it.
In this Pulse Picks 2020 list, we write on the best 10 Nigerian footballers of 2020.
1. Victor Osimhen (Lille/Napoli)
Victor Osimhen had an excellent 2020 although much of what he achieved in the 2019/2020 season at Lille happened in 2019. Still, the striker remains one of Nigeria's best players.
He ended the 2019/2020 season with 18 goals in 38 appearances and also won the Club's Player of the Year.
He was included in Ligue 1's Team of the Season and won the 2020 Prix Marc-Vivien FoΓ© which is the award for the best African player in Ligue 1.
In 2020, he also got a big move to Serie A side Napoli where he started well before a shoulder injury sidelined him since early November.
2. Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester City)
Wilfred Ndidi has been the most consistent and best Nigerian player in the last five years. Since he joined Premier League in January 2017, the midfielder has grown to become one of the best players in his position in the world, not just Nigeria.
In 2020, he continued in that stride. With his elite ball-winning abilities, the 24-year-old impressed again for Leicester City who for most of the 2019/2020 season punched above their weights with a battle for a top-four finish.
An injury layoff has limited his impact in the latter part of 2020, but he has impressed again since he made his recent return.
3. Simy Nwankwo (Crotone)
Simy Nwankwo in 2020 was one of Nigeria's best strikers. He tore the Serie B-second division in Italy-apart with 20 goals which made him finish as top scorer of the division in the 2019/2020 season.
The lanky striker offered so much upfront for Crotone in that season and scored different types of goals-from headers to sitters. His goals also helped Crotone return to the top flight where they are struggling.
4. Zaidu Sanusi (Santa Clara/Porto)
Zaidu Sanusi might have come into prominence in the latter part of 2020, but the left-back has been fantastic all through the year.
2020 was a good year for the 23-year-old. The defender made 21 league appearances for Santa Clara who managed a decent ninth-place in the Primeira Liga. His performances in that season were good enough to attract Portugues giant Porto who got the Nigerian to replace Brazilian Alex Telles who made a move to Manchester United.
For Porto, Sanusi has been brilliant, putting in fine performances and also excelling in Champions League night.
In 2020, he also made his debut for the Super Eagles and has quickly established himself as the first-choice in the left-back role.
5. Semi Ajayi (West Brom)
It's time to give Semi Ajayi his flowers. The central defender has been decent for a couple of years, but in 2020, his career experienced a lift. Starting from the previous year, Ajayi had a solid season for West Brom who secured promotion to the Premier League.
Ajayi enjoyed a fine partnership at the back with Kyle Bartley. An imposing centre back, the Nigerian showed composure and solidity at the back.
Despite his slight frame, the Nigerian played with a remarkable turn of pace and was also dominant in the air.
He also chipped in five goals in the league to finish as the joint-sixth scorer at West Brom, and some of these goals came in pivotal moments for Slaven Bilic's side including the second goal in their 2-0 win over Luton in February.
Ajayi's goal in that game came when West Brom was under pressure as Luton pressed for an equaliser. He doubled the lead to secure a win for West Brom after a seven-game winless run.
In the Premier League this season, the 27-year-old has been decent so far. Although West Brom are struggling, the Nigerian has continued to put in fine individual performances.
6. Paul Onuachu (Genk)
After making his name in Denmark, Paul Onuachu moved to Belgian to play in a considerably more competitive league in 2019. He couldn't replicate his Denmark form in Belgium in that first season, but he did manage to score nine goals in 22 league games.
In this season, however, the 26-year-old is soaring in Belgium where he has 14 goals in 17 games.
7. Frank Onyeka (FC Midtjylland)
The 2019/2020 season saw the emergence of Frank Onyeka, a player who had been at FC Midtjylland since 2016. After playing a bit-part role in his first two seasons, Onyeka showed himself to be a top talent with his performances for FC Midtjylland in the 2019/2020 season.
A player with a range of abilities, the 22-year-old played everywhere in midfield for FC Midtjylland. As a defensive midfield, he covered a lot of grounds and performed his defensive duties very well.
When asked to play further up in midfield, the Nigerian impressed again, with a 71% dribble success and a majority of his 84% pass accuracy coming in the opposition's half.
He dropped enormous performances for FC Midtjylland who finished the season with the league title and was rewarded with the club's Player of the Year award.
This season, he is on the same level, balling out every weekend for his side. In the Champions League, he managed to show his ball-winning ability and made more tackles plus interceptions than any other midfielder in the group stage.
He made 18 tackles, second-most tackles and made 19 interceptions, the most.
8. Joe Aribo (Rangers)
Aribo came fully into Nigerians'radar when he committed to play for the Super Eagles and made his debut in October 2019.
Since then, he has been one of the most Nigerian consistent players. For Rangers in the Scottish Premiership, the 24-year-old made 25 starts in his side's 29 games as one of Steven Gerrard's most trusted players at the club.
This season, the Nigeria international has scored four goals in eight games. For the Super Eagles, he has continued to be one of the first picks.
9. Kelechi Iheanacho (Leicester City)
2020 was the year Kelechi Iheanacho came back into reckoning. It started with a game in early December 2019 when he came on to assist and score the winner for Leicester City in a 2-1 home league win over Everton.
For the first quarter of the year, he continued with that form that forced him into the plans of Brendan Rodgers. He impressed in Leicester City's run to the semifinal of the League Cup and scored some vital league goals.
When the Premier League returned after it was first halted because of the pandemic, the 23-year-old was Leicester City best player in the games he played. Goals against Everton (again), Crystal Palace and his lively performance against Manchester United showed he belongs at Leicester City's level.
This season, the 24-year-old has been impactful in most games he has played with three goals in six games in the Europa League.
He is also back with the Super Eagles with his place in the team now a little more secured due to his fine form for his club side.
10. Samuel Chukweuze (Villarreal)
It hasn't been a fantastic year by the standards of his talent and abilities, but Samuel Chukwueze did enough in the year in review to be rated among Nigeria's best players.
His notable performances for Villarreal came during La Liga's restart. This season he has been one of Villarreal's most influential players and has scored one and assisted one in 13 league games for the Yellow Submarines. He also has one goal in four Europa League games.
The 21-year-old remained one of the first picks in the Super Eagles and scored an incredible solo goal in the 4-4 draw against Sierra Leone in November.