Osimhen will be more prolific at Arsenal

Nigerian artiste, Chukwudi Ken Agali, popularly known as Chuddy K talks about his fond memories of Nigerian football and Arsenal, in this interview with ABIODUN ADEWALE

What’s your sports story while growing up?

I started my life in Ajegunle so back then it was either you play football or you do music. Musicians and footballers from Ajegunle were doing well then. Daddy Showkey was a family friend, we used to stay on the same street and he used to come around Alhaji Musa Street, close to Iya Ojo. Basically, I knew how to play football very well, one of my uncles that was with us was a footballer, he was playing for Julius Berger then and he was also training the young ones. I used to be the one to carry the ball then. I was also a chorister in church due to my mum’s influence. So, the two things were going well for me.

What position did you play?

I was a striker, the kind of striker you don’t want to see near your post. I was always going to score. I also played in secondary school at some point too. Music was what took my time majorly so I couldn’t do much.

How easy was it to choose music over football then, since you had some motivation for both?

I was good at football but obviously, I sang better than I played football. With singing, I have been like a star since I was eight years old when I used to go sing in the churches and the whole place would be lifted. I’ve been a child star and they wanted me to join an adult choir at that young age. At 15/16 when I joined Salvation Boys again, the stardom kind of started again from there.

So, how do you stay connected with sports?

I am an Arsenal fan and everybody you meet as an Arsenal fan is a true person because we are loyal. We don’t leave you when things are bad for you. I’ve been an Arsenal fan since 1997/98 when Kanu Nwankwo joined the club.

You must have really liked Kanu, for him to have made you join the club. What are your fond memories of him before his Arsenal days?

Yes, the 1996 Olympics. He was our cult hero and I followed him from Inter Milan to Arsenal. Then they had a French coach and ruling English football then was incredible. I really liked Arsene Wenger too and I used to think he was the owner of the club. I also fell in love with Thiery Henry, Ray Parlour, Robert Pires and some other guys, even before the invincibles. For me Arsenal is not just about supporting a club, it’s a tradition. It’s not about us not winning the Champions League. We had the chance to win in 2006 but we were robbed against Barcelona and again in 2008 when Robin Van Persie was given a red card for no reason. He didn’t hear the referee and he said the stadium was very loud. Till today, that thing is a stigma on us. That 2006 final was really painful. We were the underdogs and we were supposed to win that game. This season again we are meeting Real Madrid, you will be shocked that we will outplay them and there will be a robbery from the referee. I just hope we win. Let us just have Saka back and we will see what happens.

So, have you been to the Emirates Stadium before?

Yes I have been there twice and it was a wonderful experience. I have also been to Stamford Bridge and the stadiums of the two Manchester clubs. I was also at Charlton Athletic Stadium for something else, not to watch football.

How do you see Arsenal’s Premier League chances with the 12-point gap and nine games to go?

If not for injuries, Arsenal was supposed to win the league this year. I don’t know what’s wrong with the owner, the time he is supposed to buy players; he won’t listen to the coach. That’s the problem. Assuming we bought a striker in January, we won’t be in this position. If we have someone like Victor Osimhen in our front, it would have been a done deal. I really want him at Arsenal and if he goes to any other club like United and Chelsea, he might get frustrated. If he comes to Arsenal, let him just stay in the front, he will even be tired of scoring goals. If he has someone like Odegaard feeding him, just like he is doing for Halaand in their national team. If we have that kind of partnership at Arsenal, we can win the league four times in a row. We just need that prolific striker and our midfielder is very good and I say our defence is the best in the world too. So, right now, I don’t think Liverpool can lose four matches and us winning all our matches too.

Nigeria are back in the World Cup qualifiers this window, do you think it’s still possible to qualify despite our bad start?

There is still time if we win our remaining five matches. As we win, they are also losing points and we can qualify. We don’t need to draw, we just have to win. We have players that are really good and are doing well at club level. From the African best Lookman, to Osimhen, Boniface, Iwobi and Bassey at Fulham and Ola Aina who is one of the best defenders in the EPL right now. They need to forget about individual qualities and put their heads together. This team can beat England or any other team in the world. How can we be in that group and go as low as the fifth position?

Who is your favourite Nigerian player of all time?

I like Okocha, even though he didn’t win all the awards he was supposed to win. But this is someone Ronaldinho watched and picked his skills. If Okocha was a Brazilian or a European, I can’t imagine the number of accolades he would have won. Okocha is the most skillful player that football has ever seen. But if you talk of someone that achieved, Kanu on the other hand won the Premier League, the Champions League and even the Serie A. He also won the African best player award twice. So, I will just give it to him.

In Music, what are you up to lately?

I just dropped a new song titled Sunday Morning and it’s streaming on all platforms. People should go and download and I am also working on my EP which is coming out soon.