For five days, over 100 students converged on Grange School, Lagos for the 2nd FCV Gladiator Camp and at the grand finale, four outstanding players that distinguished themselves were awarded scholarships for training tours.
The five-day clinic was organised by Dynaspro Promotion Limited in collaboration with UK-based FCV International Academy with the sole aim of unearthing talents in their bid to contribute to the football ecosystem in Nigeria.
The scholarship awardees were Chikwere Ikpo, Yakubu Danladi, Stephen Akhimien and Sadiq Musa and they are expected to embark on a two-week training tour of UK-based FCV International Academy come July.
Former Super Eagles star, Mutiu Adepoju, who mentored the students commended the organisers for staging such camp that will improve the lots of football development in the country.
Mutiu urged the players to combine education with sports, while tasking them on the need to be resilient in all they do.
“I served as an example to you all. My career would have been cut short should I fail to imbibe the spirit of resilience. I almost gave up when I was dropped by club and national team coaches but the capacity to withstand difficulties kept me going and here I am today telling you all my success story. I urge you all never to give up and I pray you will succeed in all endeavours,” he stated.
Reacting to the successful scouting programme, Senior Manager at FCV International Academy, Kerem Karacauli described Nigeria as a hotbed of football talents that should be well harnessed.
“I’m satisfied with what I have seen so far. Although most players are still a work in progress, I think they will all improve as time goes on. We sighted some qualities in some of the players and ability to take the ball under control instinctively is another key skill we all observed. Some players know exactly what they’re going to do before receiving the ball and I think with all these, the lads will go places,” he stated.
In a similar vein, FCV International Academy youth coach Laim Merrick hinted that the academy would be willing to help shape the players to high standards.
