Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 8 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Uthman Olawumi provided it, and the 9.07 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
Player ratings10 Feb 2031
Kelechi Ejuke, 19, plays like he has been here for years — 8.58
A mark of 8.58 means one thing beside a twenty-nine-year-old's name and something else entirely beside a 19-year-old's. Nobody at the ground needed telling which this was.
Jerry Alex was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
He is 23 and the ground already sings his name, which is a thing that happens to local boys and almost never to signings. Everything from here is measured against an affection he did nothing to earn except be from here.
In brief
SquadMustapha Salisu falls out with a teammate over standards
The deadline has passed and the squad is the squad. 8 arrived, 5 left, and everything else printed about this club last month was a rumour that stayed one.
Jerry Alex and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Junior Aimufua was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Successful dribbles: 16. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
The dugout3 Feb 2031
The view from the dugout
“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 0‑2 defeat, delivered by Nicolò Ravelli to a room that had heard them before.
A month is long enough that nobody gets in by accident. Wilfred Ogunjobi is in the division's best eleven for it, which is a quieter compliment than an award and a more reliable one.
1 for Nnamdi Anthony, marked 7.64, and a centre-half's name in the part of the report he normally only reaches by mistake. He will not be allowed to forget it in the dressing room for a month.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Kwara United they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Oladoye Ezekiel and Kwara United agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Junior Aimufua was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“It was not right for me. I am not going to explain why to anybody except the people I owe an explanation to.” A deal agreed between two clubs, and a player who declined to be part of it.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Successful dribbles: 21. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 23-year-old it feels ownership of. Oladoye Ezekiel has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Abdullahi Mohammad. 1‑0 against Wikki Tourists, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Mustapha Salisu was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Marked 8.09 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
“The players deserve the credit. My job was easy today.” It was not, and everybody in the room knew it; after 1‑0, Nicolò Ravelli could afford to be generous.
The offer from Rivers United for Somtochuwku Ezenabo was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Warri Wolves waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Kwara United is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
Successful dribbles: 23. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Add another name to the list: Barau have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Ahmed Olamilekan. The answer from Kwara United has not changed — yet.
Jerry Alex was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Beaten 2‑3, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Squad13 Jan 2031
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Aimufua is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Kelechi Ejuke and Kwara United agree another 3 years.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Adeshina Taiye and Kwara United agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Squad23 Dec 2030
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Aimufua is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Nobody at Kwara United will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Nurudeen Badmos signs something — a contract at Kwara United or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Kwara United. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
Jerry Alex was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad16 Dec 2030
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Aimufua is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Abdullahi Mohammad is on it.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Kwara United, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Kwara United know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
He asked about his future and was given an answer with minutes in it. The manager has now made a promise in a building where promises are remembered, and the clock on it has started.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Kwara United is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Jerry Alex and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Nobody at Kwara United will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Jerry Alex and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad2 Dec 2030
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Aimufua is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Kwara United has been clear about where Saka Abdulmajeed stands, which is more than many ever get.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Nobody at Kwara United will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Nurudeen Badmos signs something — a contract at Kwara United or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Somtochuwku Ezenabo may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.
A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Suraj Ayeleso has written the date down.
In brief
BoardroomThe Kwara United production line keeps running
The dugoutThe manager plants his flag on Jerry Alex
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Kwara United, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Suraj Ayeleso is on it.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad28 Oct 2030
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Mustapha Salisu is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Nurudeen Badmos signs something — a contract at Kwara United or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Suraj Ayeleso has written the date down.
25 graduates, from a department now rated 9 out of 20. Nothing about the academy appears in a result, and nothing about the club’s future exists without it.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad21 Oct 2030
Muhammed Alao falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Nobody at Kwara United will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Suraj Ayeleso has written the date down.
In brief
The dugoutThe manager plants his flag on Jerry Alex
Supporters organise against the Kwara United board
A bad atmosphere can be waited out. A group of people meeting afterwards to decide what to do about it cannot, and everybody in the building knows which stage this is.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Kwara United they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Abdulraheem Olamilekan and Kwara United agree another 3 years.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Abdullahi Mohammad signs something — a contract at Kwara United or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Kwara United can pretend not to have heard.
Jerry Alex and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad7 Oct 2030
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Mustapha Salisu is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Four or five weekends of consistency, judged against everybody in the division doing his job. Adeshina Taiye has come out of that comparison in the side, and Kwara United have had the benefit of every one of those afternoons.
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Ayodeji Abayomi has his answer from Kwara United; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
Nnamdi Anthony and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Junior Aimufua was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
“There are things I liked and things we will be doing on Tuesday until they are right.” 0‑0, and a manager who had already decided what Tuesday looked like.
The shape wanted a different profile against this opponent, which is a real football answer and no comfort at all to the man it is about. He did nothing wrong and he did not play.
The crowd waited for a goal that never came. Abia Warriors defended in numbers and left with what they came for, and the two sides could be playing still without troubling a scorer.
4‑0, and the margin flattered nobody — it could have carried another goal or two without complaint. Afternoons like this are why people keep coming.
The terraces16 Sep 2030
Supporters organise against the Kwara United board
A bad atmosphere can be waited out. A group of people meeting afterwards to decide what to do about it cannot, and everybody in the building knows which stage this is.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Kwara United is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Junior Aimufua was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.
Jerry Alex and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
A deal that was a phone call from completion at lunchtime was dead by midnight. Kwara United will try again when the window opens; Wikki Tourists may not be selling by then.
Squad9 Sep 2030
Muhammed Alao falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout9 Sep 2030
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 1‑2 Nicolò Ravelli left the room before anybody could ask which.
The clubs have shaken hands with Wikki Tourists; the player has not yet. Personal terms are next, and personal terms are where more deals die than anybody prints.
Boardroom2 Sep 2030
Deadline passes with 7 signed and 4 gone
That is the business done at Kwara United until the window opens again. Whether it was enough will be answered on Saturdays rather than in a column, and the first Saturday is close.
Jerry Alex was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
6 goals. Both benches spent the second half looking at each other rather than at the pitch. Purists will complain about Kwara United and Barau in equal measure; everybody else had a wonderful time.
It finished 4‑2, and it was Adeshina Gata’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to Kwara United.
Squad2 Sep 2030
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Aimufua is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Add another name to the list: Wikki Tourists have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Uthman Olawumi. The answer from Kwara United has not changed — yet.
In brief
Player ratingsJerry Alex was on a different afternoon to everybody else
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 8 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Uthman Olawumi scored, and precious little else went right: 2‑3 to Enyimba, and a quiet walk to the dressing room.
Squad26 Aug 2030
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Aimufua is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
At 22 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.
Marked 8.28 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 2‑3, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Kwara United is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Warri Wolves made Kwara United work for it, but the scoreboard read 1‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Squad19 Aug 2030
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Muhammed Alao is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Kwara United will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
0‑3 to Kano Pillars, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.
“I know what people will say. I know what I want, and it is here.” Barau had the fee agreed and the shirt ready; they did not have the player, and now they will not.
Successful dribbles: 27. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
The clubs have shaken hands with Bayelsa United; the player has not yet. Personal terms are next, and personal terms are where more deals die than anybody prints.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Muhammed Alao was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Kwara United will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
The terraces22 Jul 2030
The mood at Kwara United has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
“I know what people will say. I know what I want, and it is here.” Barau had the fee agreed and the shirt ready; they did not have the player, and now they will not.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Kwara United they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Kwara United asked and Wikki Tourists said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Junior Aimufua was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Kwara United will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Successful dribbles: 34. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Abdullahi Mohammad provided it, and the 9.16 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
A shoot-out is remembered by its ending, and this one ends with Nurudeen Badmos: 1 kept out, and a set of supporters who will describe every one of them for the next twenty years.
Jerry Alex and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 52 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Jerry Alex was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Mustapha Salisu and Kwara United agree another 4 years.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 22-year-old it feels ownership of. Abdullahi Mohammad has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
15 without a win is the sort of run that changes how a town talks about its club, and Kun Khalifat were the afternoon it stopped. Nothing is fixed by one result and everything feels different by one.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Kwara United will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
“I listened, I thought about it, and I am staying. That is the whole story.” The clubs had agreed a fee. Kazeem Abdulkadir had not agreed to go, which turned out to be the part that mattered.
Bayelsa United have accepted the money. What Kwara United do not yet have is the man, and between here and the photograph is a conversation about wages that both sides are dreading.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Kwara United will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
The terraces24 Jun 2030
Supporters organise against the Kwara United board
A bad atmosphere can be waited out. A group of people meeting afterwards to decide what to do about it cannot, and everybody in the building knows which stage this is.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Kwara United is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Nnamdi Anthony was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Kwara United offered $180.0K; Bayelsa United said it was not close. The manager will be told the money is still there for the right player, which is what managers are told.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Wikki Tourists have kept their man, and Kwara United go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Kwara United will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Player ratings17 Jun 2030
Up for the corner, and Philip Ozor delivers — 7.99
Centre-halves are allowed forward twice a season and are judged on what they do when they get there. Philip Ozor scored, was marked 7.99, and got back before anybody noticed he had gone.
The most common injury in the game and the most rushed back from. Kwara United will quote 14 days and will be careful with it, because the second one is always worse than the first.
$180.0K on the table at Bayelsa United. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Muhammed Alao was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
13 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 82 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.
The clubs have shaken hands with Wikki Tourists; the player has not yet. Personal terms are next, and personal terms are where more deals die than anybody prints.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Kazeem Abdulkadir will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Kwara United the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Jerry Alex was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Junior Aimufua was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
12 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Kwara United will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Four or five weekends of consistency, judged against everybody in the division doing his job. Adeshina Taiye has come out of that comparison in the side, and Kwara United have had the benefit of every one of those afternoons.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Kwara United will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
The terraces27 May 2030
The mood at Kwara United has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Kwara United is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
0‑2 to Niger Tornadoes, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Squad27 May 2030
Muhammed Alao falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 105 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
10 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Jerry Alex and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 22-year-old it feels ownership of. Abdullahi Mohammad has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
Marked 8.19 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
It needed Abdullahi Mohammad to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Nasarawa United, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
9 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Kwara United can pretend not to have heard.
The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 8 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Kwara United is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Jerry Alex was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad13 May 2030
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Aimufua is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
8 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
7 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Kwara United can tell you which week it ends in.
Nnamdi Anthony and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Muhammed Alao and Kwara United agree another 2 years.
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Squad6 May 2030
Muhammed Alao falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
3 kept out from twelve yards, and a stadium that will describe each of them for twenty years. A goalkeeper needs one night like this in a career, and this was it.
The terraces29 Apr 2030
Supporters organise against the Kwara United board
A bad atmosphere can be waited out. A group of people meeting afterwards to decide what to do about it cannot, and everybody in the building knows which stage this is.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Kwara United they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
6 games without scoring. Strikers stop looking up, midfielders take the extra touch, and every shot that clears the bar is followed by a groan that has been building since the last goal.
Nnamdi Anthony was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad29 Apr 2030
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Aimufua is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
5 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
4 games without scoring. Strikers stop looking up, midfielders take the extra touch, and every shot that clears the bar is followed by a groan that has been building since the last goal.
Jerry Alex and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
A goalkeeper's career is counted in the games nobody scored in, and Nurudeen Badmos now has 25 of them across 187 appearances. Nothing about that number was luck.
Something was said to Ahmed Olamilekan and then it happened. In this industry that passes for remarkable, and the dressing room noticed faster than any supporter could.
“It is not the end of the world and it is not good enough. Both of those are true.” The manager, after a 0‑0 draw, said the honest thing and then went to say it again inside.
Looking ahead22 Apr 2030
Kwara United take on the side everybody is chasing
Remo Stars arrive as leaders. A side at the top is beaten roughly once a month, and the club that does it gets a week it remembers for a year.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Kwara United they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Jerry Alex was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 3 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Muhammed Alao was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout15 Apr 2030
The view from the dugout
“We did not lose. Some weeks that is all you get, and I would rather have the point than not.” Nicolò Ravelli chose the glass-half-full version of 0‑0; the supporters left with the other one.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad8 Apr 2030
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Aimufua is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Successful dribbles: 18. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
The dugout8 Apr 2030
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑2 Nicolò Ravelli left the room before anybody could ask which.
Enyimba next, and one man in the Kwara United dressing room knows their training ground better than his own. The reception will tell him what they thought of him.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Nurudeen Badmos signs something — a contract at Kwara United or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
15 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Kwara United lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
The terraces1 Apr 2030
Supporters organise against the Kwara United board
A bad atmosphere can be waited out. A group of people meeting afterwards to decide what to do about it cannot, and everybody in the building knows which stage this is.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Ahmed Olamilekan will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Kwara United the goodbyes have quietly begun.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Kwara United have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
23 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Kwara United lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Jerry Alex and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad25 Mar 2030
Muhammed Alao falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Successful dribbles: 17. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
“A point is a point and I will take it, but we should have had all three.” Nicolò Ravelli after the 1‑1 draw, and the sentence every manager in the country said at some stage this weekend.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Somtochuwku Ezenabo trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
The shape wanted a different profile against this opponent, which is a real football answer and no comfort at all to the man it is about. He did nothing wrong and he did not play.
32 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Kwara United lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Kwara United they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Nnamdi Anthony and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad18 Mar 2030
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Aimufua is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
A 1‑0 win over Kano Pillars, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Player ratings18 Mar 2030
Adeshina Gata was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.12. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
“We earned that. I asked them for a reaction and I got one, and now I want the same again on Saturday.” Nicolò Ravelli on a 1‑0 afternoon that pleased him more than he was prepared to show.
14 defensive actions and a clean sheet at the end of them. A defender's afternoon can only be told by what did not happen, which is why nobody makes a highlights package out of one and every manager in the division would take it.
39 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Kwara United lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Successful dribbles: 22. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Nnamdi Anthony and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout11 Mar 2030
The view from the dugout
“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 1‑3 defeat, delivered by Nicolò Ravelli to a room that had heard them before.
Every squad has one of these fixtures for somebody every season. This one is Jerry Alex’s: the club that knew him first, the supporters who will decide in the first minute whether to applaud, and Kwara United needing him to play as if none of it matters.
46 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Kwara United lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
The terraces4 Mar 2030
The mood at Kwara United has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Ahmed Olamilekan will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Kwara United the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Successful dribbles: 18. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad4 Mar 2030
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Muhammed Alao is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The words a physio says slowly. 53 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
7.71, 1 on the scoresheet, and the specific comedy of a back-four player celebrating like somebody who does this every week. He does not, and that is exactly why the ground reacted the way it did.
Jerry Alex and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Junior Aimufua was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Marked 8.13 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Ahmed Olamilekan trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
60 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Kwara United lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Successful dribbles: 33. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
A mark of 8.57 means one thing beside a twenty-nine-year-old's name and something else entirely beside a 21-year-old's. Nobody at the ground needed telling which this was.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Kwara United is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Jerry Alex was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Junior Aimufua was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
He is 21 and the ground already sings his name, which is a thing that happens to local boys and almost never to signings. Everything from here is measured against an affection he did nothing to earn except be from here.
The words a physio says slowly. 67 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Terms were offered and declined. Whether it was the wages, the role or the town, nobody at Shooting Stars is saying, and nobody at Kwara United is enjoying the guessing.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 21-year-old it feels ownership of. Sideeq Habeeb has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
74 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Kwara United lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
“I have watched this squad. There is more in it than the table says.” First press conference, first promise — Nicolò Ravelli made the one every new manager makes, and now comes the part where it gets checked.
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
0‑4 against El-Kanemi Warriors, and no complaints that would survive the replay. The manager spoke about character afterwards; the terraces used shorter words.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Kwara United have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Ahmed Olamilekan will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Kwara United the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Boardroom4 Feb 2030
Deadline passes with 7 signed and 0 gone
That is the business done at Kwara United until the window opens again. Whether it was enough will be answered on Saturdays rather than in a column, and the first Saturday is close.
Everything agreed with Shooting Stars, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
Terms were offered and declined. Whether it was the wages, the role or the town, nobody at Kano Pillars is saying, and nobody at Kwara United is enjoying the guessing.
The words a physio says slowly. 83 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Junior Aimufua was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Kwara United asked and Katsina United said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Add another name to the list: Bayelsa United have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Kazeem Abdulkadir. The answer from Kwara United has not changed — yet.
Kano Pillars have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.
90 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Kwara United lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Kwara United have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Two goals and a mark of 8.55 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.
$260.0K on the table at Wikki Tourists. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Jerry Alex. 3‑1 against Wikki Tourists, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Adeshina Taiye and Kwara United agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Successful dribbles: 20. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Enyimba have kept their man, and Kwara United go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
In brief
SquadWords at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Player ratingsAdeshina Gata was on a different afternoon to everybody else
98 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Kwara United lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Everything agreed with Bendel Insurance, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
The name of Ahmed Olamilekan has come up in conversations Kwara United were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
13 days with the chair empty, a list of names that grows and shrinks by the day, and not one signature on anything. Every week that passes takes the best candidates off it.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Junior Aimufua was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The statement thanked him for his efforts and wished him well, in that order and in about that many words. The search begins immediately.
The terraces7 Jan 2030
Supporters organise against the Kwara United board
A bad atmosphere can be waited out. A group of people meeting afterwards to decide what to do about it cannot, and everybody in the building knows which stage this is.
“I am not thinking past Saturday, and I would advise nobody else to.” The caretaker’s first rule is to pretend the job is small; Alex Oduya recited it perfectly.
“I know what people will say. I know what I want, and it is here.” Barau had the fee agreed and the shirt ready; they did not have the player, and now they will not.
Player ratings7 Jan 2030
Ahmed Olamilekan, 21, plays like he has been here for years — 7.91
A mark of 7.91 means one thing beside a twenty-nine-year-old's name and something else entirely beside a 21-year-old's. Nobody at the ground needed telling which this was.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Boardroom7 Jan 2030
7 academy players handed senior numbers at Kwara United
The morning the pathway stops being a brochure and becomes a team sheet. Most of them will not be here in three years; all of them have already done the hard part, which was getting to today.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Jerry Alex was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad31 Dec 2029
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Mustapha Salisu is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
In brief
The dugoutNurudeen Badmos has become a man the manager trusts
Jerry Alex and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Imuran Mustapha and Kwara United agree another 3 years.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Junior Aimufua signs something — a contract at Kwara United or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Kwara United. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
A manager forgives a bad Saturday far more readily than a bad Tuesday, because one of them he can explain and the other one he chose. The reports this week have not been good.
Not a month, not a run of form — a whole season of being the best 21-year-old anybody in this division could put on a pitch. This is the honour that gets mentioned for the rest of his career.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Junior Aimufua was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Jerry Alex and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Junior Aimufua was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Junior Aimufua signs something — a contract at Kwara United or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Nnamdi Anthony has written the date down.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Mustapha Salisu was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Ahmed Olamilekan and Kwara United agree another 4 years.
Nobody at Kwara United will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Junior Aimufua was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Ahmed Olamilekan is on it.
He asked about his future and was given an answer with minutes in it. The manager has now made a promise in a building where promises are remembered, and the clock on it has started.
Jerry Alex was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Nobody at Kwara United will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Somtochuwku Ezenabo trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Kwara United know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Jerry Alex and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Muhammed Alao was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Somtochuwku Ezenabo trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Junior Aimufua signs something — a contract at Kwara United or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Jerry Alex was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Muhammed Alao and Kwara United agree another 2 years.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Mustapha Salisu was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
At 21 he was better than everybody his age in the division for four weeks running, which is harder than one good afternoon. Kwara United will try not to make too much of it.
Nobody at Kwara United will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Kwara United know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Jerry Alex and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Junior Aimufua was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Junior Aimufua signs something — a contract at Kwara United or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
“Ask me in the summer. I will know before anybody else does.” He is 38 with 108 appearances behind him, and Kwara United have to plan for both answers.
A year in and the city has not opened up, the language has not come, and lunch is eaten alone more often than anybody at Kwara United would admit. It shows on Saturdays.
The last league game has been played and the table has stopped moving: 32 points. The summer begins on Monday, and so does the argument about what it all meant.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The music was off and the showers ran late. What was said in that dressing room stays there, but Saturday will publish the minutes.
The dugout24 Sep 2029
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑3 Oche Obafemi left the room before anybody could ask which.
Supporters organise against the Kwara United board
A bad atmosphere can be waited out. A group of people meeting afterwards to decide what to do about it cannot, and everybody in the building knows which stage this is.
The hardest thing about being 21 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Abdullahi Mohammad did not need any: 8.39, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Successful dribbles: 21. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 21-year-old it feels ownership of. Abdullahi Mohammad has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
Three points for Kwara United, 1‑0 the final word against Rivers United in a contest settled by the finer margins.
Squad17 Sep 2029
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Muhammed Alao is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Jerry Alex was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad10 Sep 2029
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Aimufua is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
9 clean sheets and counting. Strikers leave this ground muttering his name, which is exactly how a goalkeeper measures a good season.
The dugout10 Sep 2029
The view from the dugout
“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 0‑2 defeat, delivered by Oche Obafemi to a room that had heard them before.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Somtochuwku Ezenabo trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
There is no crueller way to lose a football match. Kwara United scored in the 92th minute, the restart barely happened, and the away end was still standing when the whistle went.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Kwara United have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Boardroom3 Sep 2029
Deadline passes with 9 signed and 3 gone
That is the business done at Kwara United until the window opens again. Whether it was enough will be answered on Saturdays rather than in a column, and the first Saturday is close.
Successful dribbles: 23. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Supporters organise against the Kwara United board
A bad atmosphere can be waited out. A group of people meeting afterwards to decide what to do about it cannot, and everybody in the building knows which stage this is.
2 goals to the good, and then a slow surrender of everything that had been earned. Junior Aimufua will not be the one blamed for it, but nobody at Kwara United escapes the conversation that follows a collapse like this.
The hardest thing about being 21 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Abdullahi Mohammad did not need any: 8.10, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
$260.0K was the most the club would pay and Katsina United were asking for more. Deals like this are revived in the last week of a window roughly half the time, and everybody involved knows it.
Squad20 Aug 2029
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Aimufua is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
He is 21 and the ground already sings his name, which is a thing that happens to local boys and almost never to signings. Everything from here is measured against an affection he did nothing to earn except be from here.
The name of Kazeem Abdulkadir has come up in conversations Kwara United were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
5 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
$260.0K on the table at Katsina United. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.
Jerry Alex was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Junior Aimufua was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Jerry Alex and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad6 Aug 2029
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Terem Lawal is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
At 21 he has spent a month being better than everybody his age in the league, which is a different and harder thing than one good afternoon. Kwara United will try very hard not to make too much of it.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Nurudeen Badmos is on it.
The dugout6 Aug 2029
The manager’s verdict
“I am frustrated, honestly. We did enough to win and we did not win.” Oche Obafemi was not hiding it after 0‑0, and nobody in the Kwara United dressing room was either.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 14 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Kwara United, and both men came out saying it was fine.
$260.0K on the table at Katsina United. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.
Jerry Alex and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad30 Jul 2029
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Aimufua is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 1‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
Squad30 Jul 2029
Getting past Nurudeen Badmos has become the hardest job in the division
8 clean sheets and counting. Forwards used to back themselves here; now they shoot early, shoot wide, and look for somebody to blame.
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
The hardest thing about being 21 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Abdullahi Mohammad did not need any: 8.03, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
At 21 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“It is not the end of the world and it is not good enough. Both of those are true.” The manager, after a 1‑1 draw, said the honest thing and then went to say it again inside.
Successful dribbles: 27. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Transfer targets16 Jul 2029
$220.0K settles it between the clubs for Godswill Utum
Katsina United have accepted the money. What Kwara United do not yet have is the man, and between here and the photograph is a conversation about wages that both sides are dreading.
Nnamdi Anthony and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad16 Jul 2029
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Mustapha Salisu is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Kazeem Abdulkadir and Kwara United agree another 3 years.
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Oche Obafemi after 1‑2, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
Nobody at Kwara United will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
15 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Kwara United have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
4 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Kwara United can tell you which week it ends in.
Jerry Alex and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad2 Jul 2029
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Aimufua is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Suraj Ayeleso and Kwara United agree another 1 years.
14 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Kwara United has to find a result from somewhere.
The terraces25 Jun 2029
The mood at Kwara United has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
0‑5 to Bendel Insurance, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
3 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Kwara United can tell you which week it ends in.
Successful dribbles: 18. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.
Squad25 Jun 2029
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Muhammed Alao is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The manager kept them in and said what needed saying. A response is expected on Saturday, and if it does not come the questions move upstairs.
The dugout25 Jun 2029
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑5 Oche Obafemi left the room before anybody could ask which.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Nobody at Kwara United will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
11 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.17, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Squad4 Jun 2029
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Mustapha Salisu is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Level with 90 minutes on the clock, after an afternoon Kwara United had all but put away. Wikki Tourists will call it a point earned; the home dressing room will call it two given away, and both of them are right.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Sideeq Habeeb and Kwara United agree another 3 years.
A loan enquiry to Plateau United: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.
In brief
SquadA place in the month's best eleven for Adedeji Yeshir
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
10 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Terem Lawal has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Akinkunmi Awaziem has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Kenneth Abacha has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
8 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 5 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Muhammed Alao was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Half the programme played, position 17, 17 on the board. Doubling it is the sum every supporter has done and the only one nobody at the club will do out loud.
The dugout14 May 2029
The manager’s verdict
“I am frustrated, honestly. We did enough to win and we did not win.” Oche Obafemi was not hiding it after 0‑0, and nobody in the Kwara United dressing room was either.
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
4 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Kwara United can tell you which week it ends in.
Jerry Alex and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
0‑4 to Remo Stars, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.
6 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Jerry Alex was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 3 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Barau left with the points after a 0‑1 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Squad23 Apr 2029
Muhammed Alao falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout23 Apr 2029
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑1 Oche Obafemi left the room before anybody could ask which.
Something was said to Soliu Olorunla and then it happened. In this industry that passes for remarkable, and the dressing room noticed faster than any supporter could.
In brief
Looking aheadKwara United take on the side everybody is chasing
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Junior Aimufua was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
“I have done everything asked of me in training and it has not changed a thing on a Saturday.” The most familiar complaint in football, and one Kwara United will have to answer with minutes or with a transfer.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Nurudeen Badmos and Kwara United agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Jerry Alex and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The mood at Kwara United has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Nurudeen Badmos and Kwara United agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Successful dribbles: 18. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Squad2 Apr 2029
Muhammed Alao falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
Four or five weekends of consistency, judged against everybody in the division doing his job. Somtochuwku Ezenabo has come out of that comparison in the side, and Kwara United have had the benefit of every one of those afternoons.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad26 Mar 2029
Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Aimufua is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Oche Obafemi after 0‑1, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
Nobody at Kwara United will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Nobody at Kwara United is suggesting he is out of form. The manager simply wanted somebody with a different set of qualities for ninety specific minutes, and there is nothing a player can train to fix that.