Somewhere in Nigeria’s vast country is a new Nwankwo Kanu or a Jay-Jay Okocha, but it is not easy for the thousands of hopefuls to get a step on the ladder. Barcelona football club is looking to give some of them a chance with its first sub-Saharan academy in Lagos.
The country of 180 milllion people has hundreds of football academies but few put their trainees on the road to a contract in Europe. Based on the standards of the Catalan club, the school will take in 400 footballers in its first season with the hope to boost the level of the game.
Football is king in the West African state, which has once again missed out on yet another cup of nations. And Barcelona, isn’t the only club with its eye on Nigeria.
France’s Paris Saint-Germain also has a presence in the country and for football hopefuls the more the better
