Ex-Super Eagles midfielder Mutiu Adepoju will mentor students at the 2nd FCV Gladiator Camp taking place at Grange School, Lagos from April 1 to 5.
Adepoju was part of the Super Eagles for the FIFA World Cups in 1994, 1998 – where he scored in a 3–2 win against Spain.
Adepoju was a member of the Nigeria U20 team that played in the 1989 FIFA World Youth Championship. His brace against the United States (which featured legendary goalkeeper Kasey Keller in goal) in the semi-finals ensured a final against Portugal, a 2–0 defeat.
Adepoju described his involvement in the camp as part of his efforts to youth development. “I decided to be part of FCV Gladiator Camp because of the passion I have for youth development and the belief I have in discovering future stars.”
He added: “I hope to show them what it takes to be successful through hard work and discipline and take them through my journey as an ex-footballer.”
Adepoju played mostly as an attacking midfielder and he spent most of his career in Spain, amassing La Liga totals of 175 games and 22 goals over the course of seven seasons and representing mainly Racing de Santander and Real Sociedad.
The one-week training camp is organised Dynaspro Promotion in collaboration with UK-based FCV International Football Academy with the sole aim of identifying talents among students in Nigeria.
CEO of Dynaspro. Oluseyi Oyebode said the decision to organise the camp was borne out of his passion for school sports development in Nigeria. “Nigeria is a nation blessed with talents in sports but if we don’t discover them early, they will waste and that is why we want to fill this gap by unearthing and nurture them to stardom. The coaches that are coming coupled with the involvement of Mutiu Adepoju will inspire and help the students to fulfil their potentials in football. It is going to be a fun-filled camp mixed with several activities put in place to mould the participants during their stay,” Oyebode said.
Four outstanding students from the camp are expected to be awarded scholarships by the management of FCV International Football Academy where they will combine football with education in the UK.