Usually employed on the left of midfield, Lawal has not always been able to hold on to his Nigerian place.
But his long-range effort against Ghana in the African Nations Cup, which moved them into the semi-finals of the tournament, should have put him ahead of his rivals in the attentions of coach Adegboye Onigbinde.
He boasts previous World Cup experience in Nigeria's campaign at France 98.
Much of his club experience has come in Holland at Roda JC, whom he joined in 1996.
He was a regular in their Dutch Cup victory of 1997 but has been caught in a club v country row in the last six months.
His nickname is Chindo.