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SportsDokita (Odogwu ☝️)

@Sports_Doctor2

Jul 22

“RUSPA”
(The Kid Who Never Gave Up)

Riccardo Calafiori was only 6 years old when he was scouted by Roma because of his exceptional ability and physique.

He was nicknamed “Ruspa” which means “The Bulldozer” by his father because of his playing style at the age of 9 joined the Roma Academy and at the age of 16 signed his first professional contract with Roma.

Just when he thought he had achieved his dream, it turned into a freaking nightmare!!!!

“DON’T STOP DREAMING BECAUSE YOU HAD A NIGHTMARE”
#OdogwuTales

In October 2018, after he had just won the Italian Youth Cup with the Roma Under-17s, they were to face Viktoria Pozen who was visiting Rome for the UEFA Youth League match.

The match was evenly poised at 3-3 late in the second half, Calafiori was with the ball when he was tackled by a Viktoria Pozen player with a high boot on his knee immediately injuring him, leaving him in severe pain!!!

He suffered what was termed, a “Once In A Decade” injury and had to be stretched out. An injury that had first-team Roma players in shock!!!

“PAIN IS INEVITABLE, SUFFERING IS OPTIONAL”

His dream of playing was over as his best chance was being able to get back on his feet and walk.

He suffered a COMPLETE TEAR of ALL the ligaments in his knee. He tore his ACL, PCL, MCL, and LCL, and everything was torn.

Dzeko held up his jersey when he scored a hat-trick against the Viktoria senior team, his idol De Rossi came to visit him in the hospital, and his teammates too.

AS Roma wanted to have his surgery done in Italy but his agent, late Super agent Mino Raiola refused, insisting on him going to the United States.

Why?

“WHEN THE WHY IS CLEAR, THE HOW IS EASY”

Read 7 tweets

SportsDokita (Odogwu ☝️)

@Sports_Doctor2

Jul 20

“THE WILLIAMS BROTHERS”
(Kweku The Traveler)

Inaki Williams, the elder brother of Spanish wing sensation and Euros 2024 winner, Nico Williams had just turned 20 when he asked his mum, “How did we come to Spain?”

His mum told him, “Sit down, I think you’re ready to hear the story of papa and me now.”

For years, nobody knew that side of Inaki Williams who was now an Athletic Bilbao star with his brother, and his parents refused to tell him the story until he turned 20.

His parents, Maria and Felix left Ghana shortly after they got married, they crossed the Sahara desert without food or water.

“EVERYONE HAS A STORY TO TELL, BE WILLING TO HEAR IT BEFORE JUDGING”
RT!
#OdogwuTales

They were being smuggled into Spain so they had to be light as ever, with no luggage, they walked barefoot across the Sahara desert sand of about 40-50 degrees hot.

Many couldn't make it and to make matters worse, Maria discovered she was pregnant with Inaki Williams.

You can imagine a pregnant woman trekking barefooted through the Sahara Desert for days without food and water.

They finally got to Spain, she had to climb the fence into Melilla, Spain’s north African enclave, and immediately got arrested together with her husband, Felix.

“TOUGH TIMES NEVER LAST BUT TOUGH PEOPLE DO”

They didn't have papers, so while in prison waiting to be deported back to Ghana, a lawyer from a Catholic NGO who understood English saved them.

He told them, the only way they could avoid being deported back to Ghana is to lie and say they were from a country at war.

They immediately tore up their Ghana papers and said they were from Liberia to apply for political asylum.

The Liberian Civil war was still ongoing and that was how they were allowed to stay in Bilbao, Spain.

They got state housing and met the priest, Inaki Madones.

“REAL STRENGTH HAS TO DO WITH HELPING OTHERS”

Read 10 tweets

SportsDokita (Odogwu ☝️)

@Sports_Doctor2

Jul 5

“DIBU”
(Just Wait!!!)

As a child, he would watch his father cry because he couldn't pay their bills. He would see his parents starve so he and his brother could have something to eat.

Emi Martinez was playing for Independiente and was living in Buenos Aires and could only see his parents twice a month because they couldn't afford to come to see him play always.

Martinez didn't just see football as his passion, he saw it as an escape route from poverty for himself and his family.

“POVERTY IS A GREAT MOTIVATING FACTOR”
#OdogwuTales

He was only 16 when Arsenal invited him to come for a trial and when he got a call a week later from the Gunners offering him a place at the Emirates, his mother and brother were crying, begging him not to go but when he remembered his father crying, he said “Yes for them” because it wasn't easy for him.

He was alone in a new country where he had to learn a new language as he couldn't speak English and an entirely new culture as a 16-year-old!!!

“SOMETIMES THE HARDEST DECISIONS AND THE RIGHT DECISIONS ARE THE SAME”

His English was so bad that Arsenal put a clause in his contract that if he passed his English exams in Cambridge, they would pay him £20,000, and he did!!!!

He wanted to play but didn't have any game time at Arsenal, at one point he was the 3rd choice but Arsene and Arsenal offered him a contract meant for the 2nd choice goalkeeper and Arsene Wenger told him, “Just Wait, you will be my first choice” and he waited!!!!

“BETTER THINGS ARE ON THE WAY, JUST WAIT!!!”

Read 11 tweets

SportsDokita (Odogwu ☝️)

@Sports_Doctor2

Jun 22

“TRANSFER FEES VS PLAYER SALARIES”
(How Do They Affect A Club’s Finance)

Yesterday, transfer guru David Ornstein @David_Ornstein broke the news that Chelsea was pulling out of the Olise deal as the player's wage demands made the deal very expensive.

This is news that divided the Chelsea fanbase as many believed the club owners should have done everything to bring in Olise even if it meant disrupting the wage structure at Chelsea.

They felt if they could spend millions on transfer fees, why couldn't they just pay Olise whatever he wanted?

I think I can tell them why, follow me closely, and retweet.

- What Are TRANSFER FEES & How Does It Affect A Club’s Finance?

Transfer fees are ONE-TIME expenditures that can also be paid off in installments via “amortization” like what Chelsea has done with Enzo, Mudryk, and Caicedo's transfer fees.

The transfer fees are divided by the number of years the player signed, for example, sign a player for 100M and give him a 5-year deal. With amortization, you divide it by 5 years, meaning each year you pay 20M.

This reduces the financial burden on the club.

Transfer fees are also seen as “INVESTMENTS” and that's what determines how much you're willing to go for a player.

As an investment, the club can decide to sell anytime and depending on the player's performance, it could lead to them getting back the money invested plus gains or losses.

The key thing remains, transfer fees are a “ONE-TIME” outlay of cash that can be recouped or lost depending on the player's performance.

Read 7 tweets

SportsDokita (Odogwu ☝️)

@Sports_Doctor2

May 23

“MOLA”
(The Stubborn Football Journey Man)

The name on everyone's lips since yesterday night is “Ademola Lookman” and to many the journey to stardom started in southeast London, Peckham but that's not true.

This is another Naija “Japa Story” when Ademola Lookman's parents who were both Nigerians decided to leave the shores of Nigeria for greener pastures, and at this time, Lookman had two older sisters who were born in Nigeria as he was the only one born in Peckham, London.

Everyone has a story, let's tell Ademola Lookman’s Story.

#OdogwuTales

His father and one of his sisters were in Nigeria while he, one of his sisters, and his mum were in London.

His mum had to do all sorts of jobs, cleaning jobs, diner lady jobs, and anything she could get her hands on to put food on the table and clothes over Ademola and his sister but that wasn't even enough.

There were times when they didn't have food at home and Ademola would eat at his friend's place before coming home because he didn't want to ask his mother for food knowing how hard she was working.

“JUST TRY YOUR BEST, THAT’S ALL THAT MATTERS”

Ademola’s parents wanted Ademola to have a professional career just like most African parents.

Ademola told his parents he wanted to be an accountant but deep down he knew he just wanted to play football professionally, but he still wrote and aced his GCSE scoring 5As, 4 Bs and 1 C.

His desire to become a footballer heightened when he lost a teammate, in the amateur football team he was playing at, Waterloo FC.

Josh was only 14. Josh came to training with a swollen knee and the following week, died of a blood clot, and the death of Josh brought the team together and they swore they would try their best to make it in football for him.

“FIND STRENGTH IN YOUR PAIN”

Read 12 tweets

SportsDokita (Odogwu ☝️)

@Sports_Doctor2

May 18

“ACL WAHALA”
(Should I Do Surgery Or Not?)

Now ACL injury is the COMMONEST knee injury seen in individuals not just athletes and it’s one you simply can’t just stamp your feet on the floor twice and it’s gone.

Now, Sven Botman had a partial ACL tear and he was advised to go for surgery which isn’t a must(I will explain further) but he choose rehab and after a few months of rehab, came back and tore it completely, this time requiring surgery.

So What Went Wrong?

Now the ACL is a tough, flexible band that connects the thigh bone(femur) to the shinbone(tibia).

Athletes who participate in high demand sports like football, basketball and soccer are more likely to injure their ACL.

ACL injuries can come in two forms, one a SPRAIN and the other a TEAR, and they come in different grades and this is what would determine if you would have just rehabilitation or surgery.

Now we’ve seen situations where players injure their ACL and still walk out on their own and situations where they injure the ACL and have to be carried out, that’s where the SEVERITY/GRADES of the ACL injuries come in.

• Grades Of ACL Injury;
- Grade 1: The ligament is slightly stretched but still able to keep the joint in place.

- Grade 2: This is often referred to as the partial tear of the ACL ligament, because it’s not completely torn.

- Grade 3: This is often referred to as the complete tear of the ACL ligament with the ligament torn in half

Read 7 tweets

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