Odartey Weeps
By Daily Guide - Daily Guide Sports News | Sat, 01 Mar 2008
| 
 You must make a point of making a difference, or you will be lost in the masses. - By: Kevin Abdulrahman  |
Nii Odartey Lamptey, a child born into a poverty-stricken broken home, is an award-winning celebrated Ghanaian soccer superstar now-turned educationist with some good cash to spray around.
At age 16 he was arguably the youngest player of Ghana's senior national team, the Black Stars and he is best remembered for his outstanding performance during Senegal 92 and Tunisia 94.
He was nominated in 1991 as the Best Footballer of the Year after banging 11 goals in 39 games and in the same year he was nominated as the World's Youth Best Player after scoring 5 goals in 6 games during the Under 17 World Championship in Italy.
Odartey has played for Anderlecht in Belgium, PSV Eindhoven in Holland, Club Athletics Union in Argentina, SPVGG Greuther Furth in Germany, Union Di Sportif De Leiria in Portugal and Aston Villa and Coventry City, all in England.
Currently, he describes himself as a 'Free Player' and is the Proprietor of Glowlamp International, a first-class basic school he built as his contribution to society and arguably one of the best within the Tema Metropolis.
The soccer star had in a no-holds-barred interview with DAILY GUIDE told the story of his life; how he entered Germany with a fake Nigerian passport, the impact of 'juju' on his soccer career, his love life, his current occupation and which team he would be playing for next.
He was dressed in a white Versace T-shirt and was adorned in a golden necklace which had a crucifix as its pendant.
Odartey was in his usual low haircut and was reading a book entitled 'Building a World Class School' when DAILY GUIDE entered his office. He was relaxed in an executive swivel leather chair and had a bottle of Lucozade energy drink in front of him. On his table were two computers - a desktop and a laptop. His eyes became heavy with tears in the middle of the interview conducted by DAILY GUIDE's duo of Fortune Alimi and Halifax Ansah-Addo at his Spintex Road office.
Why? Nature had conspired to betray him, truncating his blossoming football career. He still believes he is imbued with unexploited talent which he hopes to unleash in the nearest future.
(DG): Who is Nii Odartey Lamptey?
Odartey Lamptey (OL): He is someone who comes from a poor family and has struggled in life. I started very early in life. I was very young around the ages of seven or eight when I started to play for Falcons. By that time I was very young and later there was another club called Muhammedans which wanted to register me. So I left Falcons and joined them but when the time for registration came, Falcons was still expecting me to register for them, especially because most of their players were over-aged and I was still young.
This resulted in a big fight between the two clubs. The incident happened around the now AMA office and I remember they were throwing a lot of bottles and stones at each other and none of the two clubs would allow me to register for the other. Falcons were from Accra New Town but Muhammedans was from New Town. A police man had to escort me home. When my mother saw me with the police she got scared and said she would not allow me to play football anymore. She was already having problems with me, because anytime I returned from playing football her sisters would beat me up and complain that I was not doing my house chores. I was then staying at Pig Farm.
DG: So you were born at Pig Farm?
OL: I do not know where exactly I was born but I know I grew up at Pig Farm but due to a divorce between my parents I had to go to Kumasi to stay with my father, only to realize when I got there that he had a new wife. She was not happy about my football so it got to a time my father had to choose between his wife and myself. Of course it was a new marriage and he chose his wife so I had to leave the house. I was originally to return to Accra but I had joined a club called Kalu Stars in Kumasi and when I informed them that I had to leave to Accra because of my stepmother they decided to take care of me. That was around 1988 and I had to become a Moslem because my new guardians were Moslems.
DG: Were you in school?
OL: Yes I was in school but I was not a regular student. Football was more important to me by then. Most of the time, I went to school only during sports time. Another factor was that I always owed fees in arrears and I remember one day that I was sacked for non-payment of fees but because I was good in football the girls in my class contributed and paid the fees for me. I was very grateful. School was not something that I was interested in.
DG: At what point did you finally drop out of school?
OL: That was when I was to write my Common Entrance. I did not write the exams because I had not paid and when my mates were writing the exams I was sitting on the pitch waiting for them to finish and when they finished the paper I went to my father and told him I had also completed school and that was the end of it. I was more interested in soccer and there were times I would be hired to play more than four games in a day. As soon as I finished one match, there would be another team waiting to take me away for another match.
DG: Were you being paid for that?
OL: They gave me something small. I was happy that at least I would eat and they would take care of me.
DG: Were you happy with that?
OL: At that time, that was the order of the day. We used to even help them to do other forms of work and stay with them just to get something to eat.
DG: What happened after Kalu Stars?
OL: From there I joined Kotoko Under 20. They wanted to register me but said I could only play the following year because I was very young and since I did not want to do that I managed to get to Cornerstone, and without any training, I signed for Corners. The club was later invited into the Under 17 League in 1989 and we went to Scotland for the World Championship.
DG: How did you break to the international front?
OL: When we came home from that tournament we were at camp when a gentleman came to me and said Stephen Keshie (now coach of Togolese national team) had asked him to bring me and that his club, Anderlecht, wanted to sign me on. We were chatting when some of the Ghanaian officials saw him and it turned into a terrible scene as they nearly sent him to prison. But he was made to leave the camp. Fortunately he had given me his card so when we broke camp, I decided to trace him up to Nigeria.
I went to the Nigeria lorry station and explained my situation to the drivers there. I told them I did not have a passport and enough money but I needed to be in Lagos. My Ghanaian passport was with the FA by then.
It was terrible.
DG: But you had just ended Scotland 89 and had made some money.
OL: At that time money was not the main thing. It is not like today.
We all wanted to help our nation. At that time when you are invited to play for Ghana, the feeling was something else. That is why it hurts so much when you lose a match.
DG: The Lagos trip please.
OL: Yes, so the trip to Lagos was terrible. At the borders I had to hide under the seats of our vehicle because I had no passport. But I finally arrived and gave the address to a taxi driver, who took me straight to where I was going. I had no money on me and when we got there the man was not at home. The place is called Surulere. When my link man finally arrived, he called Keshie from Belgium and we spoke on phone. Fortunately, Nigeria had a qualifying series to play so Keshie came down two days later and I met him at his hotel the next day.
I was with him when about three people came in and he gave them some money. Exactly two hours latter, I had a Nigerian Passport with my own picture in it but the passport with my picture had the name 'Keshie Junior'. It was a normal passport and had my original picture and everything. All I was able to say was 'wao'. Keshie had to return and I had to go with him. I was so nervous at the airport because of my Nigerian passport. I was very young around 14 or 15 years of age and I had not told anybody in Ghana where I was going. Absolutely no one knew I was in Nigeria and on my way to Belgium with a fake passport and that I was now the son of a Nigerian footballer.
DG: Did you have problems at the airport?
OL: I passed through very easily. I was following Keshie as his son and people were saluting me as if I was a hero. There were absolutely no problems. Six hours later we were in Belgium. The team registered me and I started to play with their younger side.
Six months later I was promoted to the senior side and I scored my debut during my very first appearance with the team.
DG: How many goals did you bang for Anderlecht?
OL: That was a lot. During that season we scored about 18 goals.
DG: Which year was your best at Anderlecht?
OL: My first year for sure. I remember that on the coach's birthday, I was parceled and put into a small box and given to him as a birthday present.
DG: How did you change your passport?
OL: We went to the Ghanaian embassy and I was given a note. You need to remember I was playing for Corners so they came to Belgium for the negotiations and that was done before they gave me my passport.
DG: At what value was the five-year contract you signed with Anderlecht?
OL: I cannot remember. It was Keshie who negotiated that deal for me. I was too young to understand it by then but once he said the money was good, I complied. I wanted to come back home because of the cold. I was freezing and feeling sad. Oh God, I do not even want to talk about this. I was with the youth club and anytime I went for training I would see my mates coming to training in their parents' car and the cars came to pick them home after training. I had to walk home in the snow. It was terrible. But I was able to pass through all that successfully and after Anderlecht, I went to PSV Eindhaven. Continued
At age 16 he was arguably the youngest player of Ghana's senior national team, the Black Stars and he is best remembered for his outstanding performance during Senegal 92 and Tunisia 94.
He was nominated in 1991 as the Best Footballer of the Year after banging 11 goals in 39 games and in the same year he was nominated as the World's Youth Best Player after scoring 5 goals in 6 games during the Under 17 World Championship in Italy.
Odartey has played for Anderlecht in Belgium, PSV Eindhoven in Holland, Club Athletics Union in Argentina, SPVGG Greuther Furth in Germany, Union Di Sportif De Leiria in Portugal and Aston Villa and Coventry City, all in England.
Currently, he describes himself as a 'Free Player' and is the Proprietor of Glowlamp International, a first-class basic school he built as his contribution to society and arguably one of the best within the Tema Metropolis.
The soccer star had in a no-holds-barred interview with DAILY GUIDE told the story of his life; how he entered Germany with a fake Nigerian passport, the impact of 'juju' on his soccer career, his love life, his current occupation and which team he would be playing for next.
He was dressed in a white Versace T-shirt and was adorned in a golden necklace which had a crucifix as its pendant.
Odartey was in his usual low haircut and was reading a book entitled 'Building a World Class School' when DAILY GUIDE entered his office. He was relaxed in an executive swivel leather chair and had a bottle of Lucozade energy drink in front of him. On his table were two computers - a desktop and a laptop. His eyes became heavy with tears in the middle of the interview conducted by DAILY GUIDE's duo of Fortune Alimi and Halifax Ansah-Addo at his Spintex Road office.
Why? Nature had conspired to betray him, truncating his blossoming football career. He still believes he is imbued with unexploited talent which he hopes to unleash in the nearest future.
(DG): Who is Nii Odartey Lamptey?
Odartey Lamptey (OL): He is someone who comes from a poor family and has struggled in life. I started very early in life. I was very young around the ages of seven or eight when I started to play for Falcons. By that time I was very young and later there was another club called Muhammedans which wanted to register me. So I left Falcons and joined them but when the time for registration came, Falcons was still expecting me to register for them, especially because most of their players were over-aged and I was still young.
This resulted in a big fight between the two clubs. The incident happened around the now AMA office and I remember they were throwing a lot of bottles and stones at each other and none of the two clubs would allow me to register for the other. Falcons were from Accra New Town but Muhammedans was from New Town. A police man had to escort me home. When my mother saw me with the police she got scared and said she would not allow me to play football anymore. She was already having problems with me, because anytime I returned from playing football her sisters would beat me up and complain that I was not doing my house chores. I was then staying at Pig Farm.
DG: So you were born at Pig Farm?
OL: I do not know where exactly I was born but I know I grew up at Pig Farm but due to a divorce between my parents I had to go to Kumasi to stay with my father, only to realize when I got there that he had a new wife. She was not happy about my football so it got to a time my father had to choose between his wife and myself. Of course it was a new marriage and he chose his wife so I had to leave the house. I was originally to return to Accra but I had joined a club called Kalu Stars in Kumasi and when I informed them that I had to leave to Accra because of my stepmother they decided to take care of me. That was around 1988 and I had to become a Moslem because my new guardians were Moslems.
DG: Were you in school?
OL: Yes I was in school but I was not a regular student. Football was more important to me by then. Most of the time, I went to school only during sports time. Another factor was that I always owed fees in arrears and I remember one day that I was sacked for non-payment of fees but because I was good in football the girls in my class contributed and paid the fees for me. I was very grateful. School was not something that I was interested in.
DG: At what point did you finally drop out of school?
OL: That was when I was to write my Common Entrance. I did not write the exams because I had not paid and when my mates were writing the exams I was sitting on the pitch waiting for them to finish and when they finished the paper I went to my father and told him I had also completed school and that was the end of it. I was more interested in soccer and there were times I would be hired to play more than four games in a day. As soon as I finished one match, there would be another team waiting to take me away for another match.
DG: Were you being paid for that?
OL: They gave me something small. I was happy that at least I would eat and they would take care of me.
DG: Were you happy with that?
OL: At that time, that was the order of the day. We used to even help them to do other forms of work and stay with them just to get something to eat.
DG: What happened after Kalu Stars?
OL: From there I joined Kotoko Under 20. They wanted to register me but said I could only play the following year because I was very young and since I did not want to do that I managed to get to Cornerstone, and without any training, I signed for Corners. The club was later invited into the Under 17 League in 1989 and we went to Scotland for the World Championship.
DG: How did you break to the international front?
OL: When we came home from that tournament we were at camp when a gentleman came to me and said Stephen Keshie (now coach of Togolese national team) had asked him to bring me and that his club, Anderlecht, wanted to sign me on. We were chatting when some of the Ghanaian officials saw him and it turned into a terrible scene as they nearly sent him to prison. But he was made to leave the camp. Fortunately he had given me his card so when we broke camp, I decided to trace him up to Nigeria.
I went to the Nigeria lorry station and explained my situation to the drivers there. I told them I did not have a passport and enough money but I needed to be in Lagos. My Ghanaian passport was with the FA by then.
It was terrible.
DG: But you had just ended Scotland 89 and had made some money.
OL: At that time money was not the main thing. It is not like today.
We all wanted to help our nation. At that time when you are invited to play for Ghana, the feeling was something else. That is why it hurts so much when you lose a match.
DG: The Lagos trip please.
OL: Yes, so the trip to Lagos was terrible. At the borders I had to hide under the seats of our vehicle because I had no passport. But I finally arrived and gave the address to a taxi driver, who took me straight to where I was going. I had no money on me and when we got there the man was not at home. The place is called Surulere. When my link man finally arrived, he called Keshie from Belgium and we spoke on phone. Fortunately, Nigeria had a qualifying series to play so Keshie came down two days later and I met him at his hotel the next day.
I was with him when about three people came in and he gave them some money. Exactly two hours latter, I had a Nigerian Passport with my own picture in it but the passport with my picture had the name 'Keshie Junior'. It was a normal passport and had my original picture and everything. All I was able to say was 'wao'. Keshie had to return and I had to go with him. I was so nervous at the airport because of my Nigerian passport. I was very young around 14 or 15 years of age and I had not told anybody in Ghana where I was going. Absolutely no one knew I was in Nigeria and on my way to Belgium with a fake passport and that I was now the son of a Nigerian footballer.
DG: Did you have problems at the airport?
OL: I passed through very easily. I was following Keshie as his son and people were saluting me as if I was a hero. There were absolutely no problems. Six hours later we were in Belgium. The team registered me and I started to play with their younger side.
Six months later I was promoted to the senior side and I scored my debut during my very first appearance with the team.
DG: How many goals did you bang for Anderlecht?
OL: That was a lot. During that season we scored about 18 goals.
DG: Which year was your best at Anderlecht?
OL: My first year for sure. I remember that on the coach's birthday, I was parceled and put into a small box and given to him as a birthday present.
DG: How did you change your passport?
OL: We went to the Ghanaian embassy and I was given a note. You need to remember I was playing for Corners so they came to Belgium for the negotiations and that was done before they gave me my passport.
DG: At what value was the five-year contract you signed with Anderlecht?
OL: I cannot remember. It was Keshie who negotiated that deal for me. I was too young to understand it by then but once he said the money was good, I complied. I wanted to come back home because of the cold. I was freezing and feeling sad. Oh God, I do not even want to talk about this. I was with the youth club and anytime I went for training I would see my mates coming to training in their parents' car and the cars came to pick them home after training. I had to walk home in the snow. It was terrible. But I was able to pass through all that successfully and after Anderlecht, I went to PSV Eindhaven. Continued
Comments To This Article
No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts?Add your comment
| Rate This Story » | Current rating: 3 by 5 users |
