Nigeria musician and producer, Adegbite Adeniran, popularly known as Adex Artquake, talks about the pain of Nigeria missing out of the Qatar 2022 World Cup, his love for EPL giants, Chelsea, and more in this interview with EBENEZER BAJELA
How do you relax whenever you are not in the studio?
I get myself actively engaged in sports because I love football a lot.
Do you play football?
No, I don’t anymore but I love to watch because it’s something I enjoy a lot. Football has a special place in my heart.
Which football club do you support?
I’m a big Chelsea fan and I’m proud to say it because that is the club of my life.
How did you feel when Real Madrid knocked Chelsea out of the Champions League?
I felt very bad but I have to take consolation in the fact that we were knocked out of the Champions League by a big team like Madrid.
Did friends make jest of you after the Blues exit?
Yes, I had so many of them poking fun at me after Chelsea got knocked. Actually, my wife was the first person to do that, followed by Klever Jay, an Arsenal fan, and a couple of other friends because I belong to the Chelsea Fans Club.
Which club does your wife support?
That’s the funniest part. She doesn’t belong to any club but whenever Chelsea lose a game, she will start singing in the house, she just wants to make me feel bad whenever we lose a game. This is happening because she knows me and my son are big fans of Chelsea. Whenever there is a live match, she will go to her room and wait for the result. If we win, she’ll say she’s a Chelsea fan, but we know it’s not true.
Do you think Madrid can do the double over English clubs as they have a second leg clash against Manchester City?
It is a 50-50 game to me because we all know how good Madrid are, especially when they are playing at home. From the first leg in Manchester, the English club has a one-goal advantage, so, the game is very open. One thing I know for sure is that City will score and that will make for an interesting game. I will be supporting City because Madrid knocked out Chelsea. Also, I want an all-English final, that is Liverpool versus Man City.
When did you start developing an interest in football?
It was in my secondary school and back then I was a goalkeeper. I was also a keeper in university and represented my department during departmental games. In short, if I had wanted to be a footballer, I obviously would have been a goalkeeper.
Will you encourage your son to be a professional footballer?
(Laughs) My son is already growing up to become a footballer. He is already representing his school and he is s a defender. Hopefully, he will grow up one day to represent Nigeria at the national level.
Personally, how do you feel after the Super Eagles couldn’t qualify for the 2022 World Cup?
I felt very bad because it affected me. I was supposed to have a deal signed, I already did a song for the Super Eagles and we were supposed to sign a deal with some companies if they qualified for the World Cup. So, when they failed to qualify, I was emotionally affected.
How were you able to handle such a heavy loss?
Well, I have to act like a man and let it go. It was painful because the boys had everything they needed to qualify, just score a goal and qualify but they failed to do that. For the first time in a very long time, I saw a full capacity stadium, people came out to cheer them to victory and support them but they failed to reciprocate that, but there’s nothing we can do.
Nigerians are calling for a foreign coach for the Eagles. Is that what you want too?
For me, it’s about the pedigree of the coach we are bringing, it could be an indigenous or foreign coach. Let me add that I will still prefer an indigenous coach. Honestly, if we have had a coach like Pep (Guardiola), (Jurgen) Klopp or (Thomas) Tuchel, we could have won that game. All we needed was a tactical change that could have gotten us that all-important goal and any of these coaches would have been able to do that. But where I fault Austin Eguavoen is that he should have included at least one home-based player who is ready to die or break a leg on the field, a player that is ready to make a name for himself by qualifying Nigeria for the World Cup.
Another AFCON qualifiers beckon. What message do you have for the players?
I will urge them to take the qualifiers seriously and now that we have Ademola Lookman and Dennis Emmanuel joining the team, they will add more quality, so, we should take advantage of that. I will also implore the new coach to add more home-based players to the team and lastly, they should not underrate any team. The pain of the World Cup ouster is still fresh in our minds and I want to believe this AFCON will be key for us.
If you are to meet any female athlete, who will that be?
I like Asisat Oshoala. I also like the tennis player, Emma Raducanu. These are two female athletes I like a lot.
Who is your favourite male athlete?
N’golo Kante is my favourite athlete any day.
What should your fans be expecting from you next?
I’m working on a project coming up soon. I will also be promoting Portable, the rave of the moment, they should look out for that too.
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