Popular novelist, Chimamanda Adichie, don yarn say she don get small crush on a Ghanaian footballer, Michael Essien Before , after the Ghanaian team defeat the United States for World Cup tournament wey Naija no qualify for.
She reveal dis tori for the introduction she write for a picture book, Africa― The Future of Football, wey photographer, Pall Stefansson na the author
Make Una read wetin im yarn
“You know some of our boys started playing this game without shoes’, Uju said. ‘Our boys’ were, of course, the Ghanaians.
“A small consequence of that game was my developing a mild crush on the Ghanaian player, Michael Essien, as much for his looks as for his dexterity.
“But the larger and more important consequence was my realisation that sports allowed us, black Africans, to address historical and political grievances in the most cathartic way.”
“My sister put aside her stereotypes of her Yoruba neighbour and her neighbour put aside her stereotypes of my Igbo sister. They forgot about the flat not clean, water wasted and electricity bills unpaid. They became, for that moment, Nigerians, who had somehow contributed to the vanquishing of the world.”
“There is no doubt that football nationalism is not peculiar to Nigerians and to Africans. Indeed, the very idea of national games is based on the premise of national identities.”
