Player Spotlight - Benin's 'Bull' Razak Omotoyossi Shines Through Adversity

Even when Razak Omotoyossi was honing his undoubted skills on the dusty pitches and streets of Agege, a poor Lagos neighbourhood, he had to battle adversity.

The stocky, Nigeria-born striker contemplated quitting the game even before his career had taken off when his street team lost a game no thanks to the rash of chances he threw away.

"I thought of quitting the game and skipped training for a month when I lost several begging chances for my youth club in Agege during a grassroots competition. It wil rank as one of my biggest disappointments in football," remembers Omotoyossi.

Adversity forced him to seek a new lease of life in neighbouring Benin Republic after he was banned for five years for allegedly attacking the referee during a Nigerian league match involving Enyimba and Sunshine Stars.

"What was first a big setback has now pushed me to another level in my career. Initially, I was devastated when I was banned for five years. I did not attack any referee, they were only looking for scapegoats and they found one in me. Even when I was accused of attacking the referee, I was not given a chance to defend myself," he says.

"We outplayed Enyimba, created many chances and I even scored a goal which was disallowed by the referee. This annoyed the fans and they took the laws into their hands."

He adds, "I was down for a good nine months after this. My club abandoned me, they refused to pay my salaries. I kept myself busy by playing on the streets with my friends and you would not know except you are told that I was jobless.

"But there were times when I felt really bad and when I even contemplated going to sell ‘pure water’ on the streets because I thought my career was over."

Some of his friends will later convince him to try his luck in neighbouring Cotonou.

"I found myself at JS Pobe, who are based close to Abeokuta. There I emerged highest scorer in the Benin league with 15 goals before I was called up to their national team," he revealed to Goal.com

"It was not very easy for me to decide (to play for Benin). After I had scored about six goals in the league, I was approached by their national team. I turned it down. I wanted to take my time but the pressure continued to mount. I called my parents in Nigeria and told them about my dilemma and they told me they don’t know anything about football and I should do what is best for me."

Omotoyossi's all-action style, much like that of his childhood hero Daniel 'The Bull' Amokachi, will catch the eye during Benin's debut at the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship in the Netherlands.

He made history by scoring Benin's first-ever goal at the tournament only to choose to go to Sheriff of Moldova rather than consider offers from clubs in England, Israel and the Netherlands.

But it was in Sweden that the striker, who played alongside Nigeria internationals Obafemi Martins and Stephen Makinwa at Ebeide FC in Lagos, that he exploded.

He formed a superb strike force with the durable Henrik Larsson at Helsingborgs to finish as the Swedish league joint top scorer in the 2007/08 season with 14 goals.

However, just when everything pointed to a move to a bigger club and a bigger league in Europe, Omotoyossi chose the fortune that Al Nasr of Saudi Arabia offered. It was a romance that lasted some months.

"I did not like the strict Muslim lifestyle there, so too my family," says the striker, known sometimes for his short temper.

"And so when Al Nasr stopped me from moving to England in January, I cancelled my contract. I was ready to lose all the money and return to Europe."

And even without a club for several months, Omotoyossi has delivered for the Squirrels of Benin. He is the country's leading scorer in the 2010 World Cup qualifying tournament with seven goals in eight games.

The local media had even questioned the sanity of national team coach, Michel Dussuyer, for insisting on a player without a club for most of the year.

But in typical Omotoyossi style, he shamed his critics by netting Benin's match winner at home against Sudan in June, bringing his tally to seven goals in eight matches.

He will equally cherish his hat-trick in Cotonou against Uganda during the second round of the qualifying series for the 2010 World Cup. This was two days after his actress wife gave birth to twin girls, Taye and Kehinde.

Omotoyossi's latest adversity is his next destination in Europe.

He signed a contract with French second division side FC Metz on the understanding that he will feature for them should they win promotion to Ligue 1. Metz though failed to gain promotion and have insisted he honours his contract.

"Metz are a good side and I would love to play for them. But I told them clearly I do not wish to play in the second division because it is not good for my career," revealed the 23-year-old Omotoyossi.

"They have been home to many African players, but my desire is to play in the top flight.

I need a bigger challenge in Europe. And I don't want to be at a club where I'm not happy because then it would be difficult for me to deliver."

It is now left to be seen how this latest episode in the striker's career will play out, but what has been consistent is that time after time he has risen above adversity. He will shine through this as well.

Samm Audu, Goal.com