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I-League: Hip Hop Music Lover Uga Okpara Hails New East Bengal Coach De Ridder
Goal.com caught up with East Bengal’s Nigerian defender…
23-Nov-2009 11:21:53 PM
Uga Okpara
is a two time African Champions league winner with Nigerian club Enyimba
FC. Despite having such an impressive CV he decided to come to India instead of
trying his luck elsewhere.
The defender explained to Goal.com the reason behind signing a one year contract with the Kolkata club.
Speaking to Goal.com he said, “I had a very successful stint with Enyimba as I won two back to back Champions League titles.
“This season I wanted a fresh challenge and my agent told me that there was a very good offer from an Indian club and so I decided to accept the proposal.
“I am here in India for one year atleast and I am going to give my best. I don’t know where I will go next but this move could be a good stepping stone for my career.”
The tall center half then gave his opinion about Indian football in general and said that is it not right to compare it with other countries.
“See football in every country is different. Indian football is not as physical as it is in Africa but one must not compare.
“I feel Indian football is improving and is unique in it’s own way. So far what I have seen, I think there is a lot of passion and potential in this country.”
East Bengal are unbeaten in all competitions since Okpara made his debut against Salgaocar in round five of the I-League.
He has won two man of the match awards in the four I-League matches and the Kolkata giants have managed to win three games in a row and also conceded just goal.
The 25 year old is happy with the start that he has made but reveals that the club were not sure about him when he first arrived.
“They (East Bengal) were not confident about me when I first arrived. But after the first game I started playing better and better and we won three games in a row so now everybody is pleased with my performance.
“I am very happy that I could contribute to the team’s success and I hope I can keep doing the same.”
The Nigerian has only been at the club for just over a month but has already trained under three coaches. When asked to give opinion about the same, Okpara praised current coach Phillipe De Ridder.
“Well its never easy when there are too many new coaches. But I think our current coach is very good and we have made a very good start under him as we won 3-0 in his first game.
“He has brought a few fresh ideas and I think everybody is happy working with him.”
Okpara then spoke about the strength of the East Bengal squad and said that the team has a good chance of winning some silverware this season.
“We have a very talented group of players. I think nothing is impossible in football so we can definitely win some trophy but we have to keep working hard and give our best in every game.”
The defender is also excited about the 2010 FIFA World Cup and feels that the African countries will perform well.
"Nigeria struggled to qualify but I think they will train hard and aim to do well in the tournament. For the first time the senior World Cup will be held in Africa so I am pretty confident that all the African countries will excel in the competition."
Finally, Okpara talked about his role models in football, favorite club and passion for hip hop music.
“I am a big fan of Brazilian defender Lucio, he is like a big wall and very few attackers can go past him. I like watching Cristiano Ronaldo also so it’s good that he is now playing at my beloved Real Madrid, who have spent big this term so there will be lot of expectations from them.
“Outside football, I have a passion for hip hop music, most of the time, I am listening to it,” he concluded.
Amoy Ghoshal
The defender explained to Goal.com the reason behind signing a one year contract with the Kolkata club.
Speaking to Goal.com he said, “I had a very successful stint with Enyimba as I won two back to back Champions League titles.
“This season I wanted a fresh challenge and my agent told me that there was a very good offer from an Indian club and so I decided to accept the proposal.
“I am here in India for one year atleast and I am going to give my best. I don’t know where I will go next but this move could be a good stepping stone for my career.”
The tall center half then gave his opinion about Indian football in general and said that is it not right to compare it with other countries.
“See football in every country is different. Indian football is not as physical as it is in Africa but one must not compare.
“I feel Indian football is improving and is unique in it’s own way. So far what I have seen, I think there is a lot of passion and potential in this country.”
East Bengal are unbeaten in all competitions since Okpara made his debut against Salgaocar in round five of the I-League.
He has won two man of the match awards in the four I-League matches and the Kolkata giants have managed to win three games in a row and also conceded just goal.
The 25 year old is happy with the start that he has made but reveals that the club were not sure about him when he first arrived.
“They (East Bengal) were not confident about me when I first arrived. But after the first game I started playing better and better and we won three games in a row so now everybody is pleased with my performance.
“I am very happy that I could contribute to the team’s success and I hope I can keep doing the same.”
The Nigerian has only been at the club for just over a month but has already trained under three coaches. When asked to give opinion about the same, Okpara praised current coach Phillipe De Ridder.
“Well its never easy when there are too many new coaches. But I think our current coach is very good and we have made a very good start under him as we won 3-0 in his first game.
“He has brought a few fresh ideas and I think everybody is happy working with him.”
Okpara then spoke about the strength of the East Bengal squad and said that the team has a good chance of winning some silverware this season.
“We have a very talented group of players. I think nothing is impossible in football so we can definitely win some trophy but we have to keep working hard and give our best in every game.”
The defender is also excited about the 2010 FIFA World Cup and feels that the African countries will perform well.
"Nigeria struggled to qualify but I think they will train hard and aim to do well in the tournament. For the first time the senior World Cup will be held in Africa so I am pretty confident that all the African countries will excel in the competition."
Finally, Okpara talked about his role models in football, favorite club and passion for hip hop music.
“I am a big fan of Brazilian defender Lucio, he is like a big wall and very few attackers can go past him. I like watching Cristiano Ronaldo also so it’s good that he is now playing at my beloved Real Madrid, who have spent big this term so there will be lot of expectations from them.
“Outside football, I have a passion for hip hop music, most of the time, I am listening to it,” he concluded.
Amoy Ghoshal
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