This Atiku plays football, not politics.

Nigerian Beach Soccer
national team player,
Sulaimon Atiku,
Nigerian Beach Soccer national
team player, Sulaimon Atiku, is
focused on making a name as a
footballer and not as a politician,
writes ’TANA AIYEJINA
Nigeria’s beach soccer national
team, the Super Sand Eagles, may
have been dethroned as champions
of the recently concluded Copa
Lagos Beach Soccer tournament by
Ivory Coast, but one relatively
unknown player, Sulaimon Atiku,
caught the eye during the
competition.
While fans and followers of beach
soccer could easily identify captain
Olawale Isiaka (Dolphins), Abu
Azeez of Warri Wolves, Abia
Warriors’ Okemmiri Ogbonnaya,
goalkeeper Abdul Isah of Kaduna
United, and Victor Tale of
Confluence Beach Soccer team, new
invitees like Lobi Stars’ Musa
Najare, goalkeeper Isah Danladi of
Sharks and Atiku, who plays for
Lagos side Owibeseb, were making
their international debuts.
But a certain player spotting the
number 5 jersey, with his name,
Atiku, boldly written behind his
jersey, caught the attention of the
fans. And they chanted his name
endlessly whenever he had the
ball.
“This player looks like a relative of
a former Nigeria Vice President,
Atiku Abubakar,” a fan said on the
final day of the competition.
But after the highly entertaining
5-4 victory over Senegal, which was
not enough for the Sand Eagles to
annex the Copa Lagos title for a
fourth consecutive time, Atiku
cleared the air on his relationship
with the more illustrious man he
shares the same name with.
“A lot of people think I have links
with him (Atiku Abubakar) but he is
not my relation. In my case, Atiku is
my surname while Sulaimon is my
first name,” he said.
And he doesn’t hope to follow the
political footsteps of Abubakar
either.
“I am not a politician, so I don’t
want to be like him. I am a
footballer and I want to keep
representing Nigeria and making
my country proud through
football.”
The Sand Eagles won the first three
editions of the competition
sponsored by First City Merchant
Bank but this year, they lost their
first match ever in the competition-
a 5-4 defeat to Cote d’Ivoire- and
the title.
Atiku is unhappy that he didn’t cap
his international debut with a
winners’ trophy but believes the
Nigerian team could become world
beaters with time.
He said, “We didn’t start
preparations on time (for Copa
Lagos) and that affected us. I
believe if we prepare early in
future competitions, we will do
better. The Ivoirians weren’t better
than us but they emerged
champions.
“We need enough support, just the
way the Super Eagles have been
supported. If that is done, more
players will want to come in and
that will bring more competition
for places in the national team. We
can do well in future beach soccer
competitions; we have the
potential to even win the beach
soccer World Cup.”
Interestingly, Atiku was only
introduced to Beach Soccer few
months before the Copa Lagos
tournament.
The player was enjoying life as a
normal football player for
Owibeseb when he caught the
attention of Super Sand Eagles
coach Audu Ejor. Now, he seems to
be enjoying a new lease of life
playing on sandy surfaces.
He added, “The national team coach
saw me play and introduced me to
Beach Soccer and I discovered that
the game is all about fitness,
strength and skill.
“There is no comparison between
both forms of football. Beach soccer
is all about strength. In normal
football, you have time to rest,
which you don’t have in beach
soccer but I’m enjoying it. Football
is all about fun and I love the beach
atmosphere, its electrifying.
“This is the first time I will
represent Nigeria internationally
and by the grace of God, I hope to
become a great beach soccer
player.
“As a newcomer, I didn’t start the
first game but started the next. You
don’t need to rush into the game
because you need to know the
rules of the game. So, I adapted to
the game gradually.”