By Nelson Dafe on December 29, 2018

The all too familiar story of clubs struggling to meet their contractual obligations with players for one reason or the other in the Nigerian football league reared its head in Ilorin in the last Nigeria Professional League (NFL) season as Kwara club ABS FC, also known as Saraki Boys, were mired in financial troubles. Players were not paid their salaries and match bonuses as and at when due as hunger and despair threatened to strangulate the players of the team as well as the club’s existence in the league.

As is the case with teams under the shackles of relegation’s threats, ABS had to rely on its players to raise their level of performance and, disproportionate to what they were receiving as pay, the players rallied round in the end and saved the season of the club by beating the drop.

One of the key players at the heart of the somewhat miraculous survival of ABS is Edeyaru Osamuyi the imposing striker (he stands at 6 feet 2 inches).

Making his debut as a professional player in the last season, Osamuyi was one of the few bright lights in the dark hours of the club.

A young, fast and aggressive attacker, he weighed in with goals (he got 4), fight and overall technical finesse to impress the club’s coaches, fans and league followers.

But beyond his very obvious talents, Osamuyi showed his mental strength and leadership qualities that seem to belie his young age and short time at the club. As the season went on and as morale began to dampen to the point of near total collapse amongst the players following the excruciating suffering they were going through, Osamuyi grew to be a leader of the team not only on the pitch but in the dressing room as well.

He would, in a quiet way, speak with teammates and motivate them to continue to offer their best for ABS and for their careers. At the height of the hardship, he helped organise a meeting amongst the players in which he advised them to resolve to fight to finish and end the season as high as they could.

“I didn’t want it to be in my time that a club would be relegated. I spoke with my teammates at the meeting and said guys, let’s not give up no matter what. Let’s just forget about the delay in salaries and play for our careers.’ Of course it was not easy to do that because we had pressing needs, but after the meeting we stuck together and redoubled our efforts and I’m glad we stayed up,” Osamuyi says.

The young Nigeria under 21 hopeful had faced tough challenges before, growing up in a modest family and neighborhood in Benin City where he had to beat the odds at the grassroots to become the top player he is today.

He had converted to a striker from the defensive midfield position he had started with in his youth club, his dribbling skills and attacking instincts being noticed by his grassroots coach who pushed him into attack where he began to thrive. However, chances of breaking through into the first team of his youth club were not easy to come by at first as he had to contend with more experienced attackers at the time who were getting more game time.

But Osamuyi worked even harder at the training ground and in the gym, adding more bulk to his frame and studying clips of great strikers of international football. And then in 2016 at the age of 16 he took the FA in cup in Edo State by the scruff of its neck, winning the top scorer award with 8 goals. 

Today, he is a player that is hard to ignore in the pitch.

Osamuyi has grown into a quick, agile, and mobile striker, with an eye for goal, and he has a solid technical base. A prolific, reliable, and opportunistic goalscorer, he quickly erased doubts about his abilities when he newly joined ABS as he grew to be known now in particular for his anticipation, reactions, and excellent positional sense, which, along with his acceleration, has enabled him to make attacking runs to beat opponents to the ball in dangerous areas.

Osamuyi is that striker who would batter a defender with sheer physicality and is well capable of finishing both inside and outside the area, as well as from volleys, with powerful strikes, and he can make good use of his head as well as both feet.

Osamuyi is also accurate on set pieces and effective on penalties. Although he can bully his way into scoring because of his sheer strength, the 18-year old has the added quality of linking-up with and playing off of his team-mates.

With the football league season about to commence in Nigeria, clubs have started making inquiries for him but the player and his manager are keeping things close to their chest as regards the player’s next move. But in the longer term Osamuyi oozes confidence when he said: “I’ve been FA Cup highest goal scorer, I’ve had a satisfying first season as a professional player in Nigeria and I am confident I can go all the way to the highest level.”

If there’s a betting man out there who has watched him play, then he would be considered smart for putting his money on the big and young Osamuyi.

•Photo shows Edeyaru Osamuyi of ABS FC of Ilorin

Source Daily Sports

Posted December 29, 2018

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