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How did your football career begin? 

Yeah. Well, I was a late starter compared to what you see nowadays. Obviously, kids are starting football earlier and earlier — parents are putting them in camps at four or five years old. That was never my journey. I was always very athletic. I used to run for my school and my county, things like that. I only started playing football when I was about 13, which is actually quite late. The way my career developed was through my PE teacher. I was playing for my school team and doing really well — I was quite a standout player for them — and he had a contact at Ipswich Town. He gave him a call and got him to come and watch me at a school game. I ended up getting a trial at Ipswich when I was 15, I think. Then I had a successful trial period and got offered a two-year scholarship. Before that, every Wednesday, I used to leave school early, which was the best thing ever, and go and train. That was pretty cool. Then I got offered the scholarship with Ipswich Town, and that’s really where my journey started.

Would you say it was a dream of yours to become a footballer?

I mean, listen, I used to play football in the school playground every day, but it was never really the path I thought I’d take. I grew up in a household that wasn’t predominantly football-based. My dad wasn’t a massive football fan and wouldn’t watch it every weekend. So from an early age, it wasn’t something I necessarily saw as my future. As I said, I was naturally athletic and did a lot of athletics, which was probably the route I thought I’d go down. Before that, I went to a predominantly rugby school, so I played for the rugby team there. We got to a few finals, including the Essex finals, and I even played at Twickenham. Actually, around the time I got scouted by Ipswich, I was asked to go for England rugby trials. So it became a bit of a split decision. I had to think, ‘This could actually be a career path for me, so I need to make sure I pick the right one.’ Being young, football just felt like the right choice. Back then — we’re talking 15 years ago — rugby wasn’t quite as big as it is now. So I chose football, and I fell in love with it.

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You now play at Centre back, but previously played at Striker. How did this come about?

I used to play everywhere, to be honest. I played on the wing a lot. I’m very quick, but because I’m so tall, people don’t always expect that. Actually, I think this year I recorded the fastest speed by any centre-half across all four leagues, including the Premier League, which is crazy. We wear the GPS vests — the StatSports ones — so that’s a pretty crazy stat. When I was younger, though, I used to switch between positions. I’d start at centre-half, and then, if we went 1–0 or 2–0 down, they’d stick me up front to win flick-ons and headers. Then we’d equalise, and they’d put me back in defence. So I was doing a bit of both. If my memory serves me right, it was probably around the second year of my scholarship, or maybe midway through the first year, when I was about 16 or 17, that they said, ‘Right, you’re going to be a centre-half.’ And then you go from there, don’t you? You just do what you’re told.

This season you were crowned champions of League Two and were promoted with Bromley, how did that feel? 

Yeah. For the team, it was only our second season at that level, so we had a lot of players who had never played there before. For me personally, I felt quite used to it. I’ve played at that level pretty much since leaving Ipswich. I signed for a League Two side, Yeovil Town, and I’ve probably played nine or 10 seasons in League Two. But, man, what a feeling. To win the league with that group of boys was really special.

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It was a very tight league as well, wasn’t it? I think there were only about five points separating first from fourth or fifth place.

That league is extremely tough. The competition and quality of players are very good. I think we went top of the league on December 29, if my memory serves me right, and we stayed there for pretty much the rest of the season. Right towards the end, MK Dons beat us at their place and went above us. But we were eventually crowned champions. It came down to the last day, which made it even more exciting.

I assume there was no level of expectation to be promoted. 

From the outside, no. But from the inside, I think the tight-knit group of players we have, and the way we are as a team and as individuals, meant we always believed it was possible. We’re very ambitious, and we knew that if we played a certain way, stuck to our strengths, and ran more than the other team, then at this level, that’s half the battle.

Do you think there was a certain point — I know you said you’d been top of the league since December 29 — where you started to feel really confident that you’d get over the line?

Yeah. I think from that point on, there was a spell where we just kept winning. I think we went 21 or 22 games unbeaten. We just wouldn’t lose. Every home game we’d win, and away from home we’d either win or draw. That’s when we started thinking, ‘This could actually happen.’ You get to a certain point in the season where the games are getting ticked off, there are fewer and fewer left, and there’s only a certain number of points available to everyone else. That’s when it starts to feel real. And you think, ‘Oh, it’s actually gonna happen.’

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You’ll be playing former Premier League champions Leicester next season. It’s quite remarkable, isn’t it, really?

Yeah. Leicester seems to be the talk of the town, obviously. I remember watching them win the Premier League, and to think that we’ll be playing them at the King Power next season is crazy.

You were named in the League Two Team of the Season as well. How did that feel personally, being recognised for your performances?

That was very special to me. I think more than that, I was probably thinking about being nominated for Player of the Season as well, which was a bit of a shock. As a centre-back, you don’t always get the recognition that strikers or wingers do. They’re the ones getting the goals and assists, so they tend to get the spotlight after games and at the end of the season. Someone who scores 25 goals will usually get more attention than a centre-back who just goes about his job and then gets forgotten about. So, yeah, that was really special. I’m very proud of that achievement.

What are your emotions like ahead of next season? Will League One be the highest level you’ve played at?

Yeah, I’ve never actually played in League One before. I’ve watched a lot of football at that level, but it’ll be the highest league I’ve played in during my career.

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How does this achievement rank in your career? You won the FA trophy with Bromley in 2022.

With the FA Trophy, you go through the rounds and then you get to the final at Wembley. Don’t get me wrong, Wembley is amazing to play at — and a lot of players, past and present, don’t even get the opportunity to play there. The number of players who actually get to experience it is very small. For example, I was speaking to Carl Jenkinson, obviously ex-Arsenal and played for England, and even he was saying the number of players at his level who haven’t played at Wembley is quite crazy. So to be able to do that is massive. But for me, winning the league just shows consistency throughout the whole season — as a team and individually. In those 46 games, to get more points than anyone else fighting for the same goal, that means everything.

You do see a lot of teams go up from League Two to League One and settle quite well there, don’t you? So it’ll be amazing to see how you guys do.

Yeah, I’m really excited to see what the league brings. Obviously, it’s a step up, but I think as a club we’ve been growing steadily, and this is what comes with it. We’ll have to rise to the occasion now and keep performing and show everyone what we’re about.

How are the fans, by the way? I know very little about Bromley. Did they really get right behind you throughout the whole campaign?

Listen, the fans are quality. We go to away games and they’re screaming, they’ve got their chants — they’ve even got my chant, which I love, if I’m being biased. This season, pretty much every game was sold out, especially from December when we were top of the league. The fans have been brilliant. I don’t think they realise how much they help a team. I think they go there obviously to support the club, or sometimes it’s just a day out for someone in the family. But to hear them being loud and getting behind the team gives us that extra one percent, and football’s all about the one percent. If you can get that from the crowd, it’s massive for us.

You’re now 30, and you seem to be getting better with age if anything, what advice would you give to aspiring younger footballers?

Oh. I think just stay consistent and don’t give up. I’ve had many times in my career where I’ve either felt stagnant or like this is the highest level I’m going to play at. But I think it’s all well and good doing things for everyone to see — the public-facing side of it. For me, a massive part of it is the things no one sees. That’s what’s improved me not only as a player but as a person. Being a role model for the younger boys we’ve got on loan, or the younger players signed to the club, helping them day to day — it all adds up. It all contributes to success.

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How does the off-season look for you? How do you prepare for the next campaign? Do you go on holiday, or are you still maintaining fitness every day?

The chairman took us all on holiday as a reward for becoming champions and getting promoted, so that was really nice — going away with the team and staff. We’re like a family. We spend more time with each other than we do with our own families, and that’s just a fact. We’re together every day, so we’ve got such a close bond. Going away with the boys to celebrate was lovely. It’s good to have a rest as well — you need it. Some people from the outside might say, ‘Why are you going on holiday? You’ve got next season to prepare for,’ but we’ve just played 50-odd games, week in, week out, for 10 months. Your body needs to recover. I’ve had a few weeks of that now, but we’ve got a programme from the sports scientists and fitness coaches that starts quite early, so I think it’s important to get back on the horse and prepare the body again for battle.

During the off-season, will you be watching much of the World Cup? 

I will be!

Do you think England can win it?

I’m not sure. There are some very good teams there, man, some really good teams. And for me again, as I said earlier, it’s those small margins — the one percent. The weather in America is so different from the UK: the humidity, the heat, it all plays a massive factor in performances. Listen, I’m rooting for England, and I hope they can go far and maybe even recreate ‘66.

You’re half Nigerian — were you disappointed they didn’t make the World Cup?

Very, yeah. Obviously, being half Nigerian, to see them miss out, I was gutted. It would be nice to have England and Nigeria in the World Cup and have two teams to support. I might need to look into getting a contact at the Nigeria set-up as well — see if I can get a call-up!

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In 2024, you co-created a clothing brand. What inspired you to enter the fashion world?

I’m a massive fan of fashion, and I have been for a while. Through modelling and exploring that passion myself, I just fell in love with it even more, and I thought what better way to show what I like than by creating something that other people can wear — something you’ve actually made yourself. I started it with a few friends I went to school with, people I’ve known for a long time. One of them I even went to nursery with, which is kind of crazy. Another of my friends actually moved to Japan about three years before that. He’s always been into fashion, and every week he’d tell us, ‘The fashion over in Japan is crazy.’ He’d go to Tokyo for the weekend and come back saying, ‘There’s so much more than what you see on the high street — let’s create something.’ So we kind of put our heads together and came up with Two Islands. Obviously Japan is an island and the UK is an island, so that’s where the name comes from. But yeah, it’s just a love of fashion and being creative. I’ve played football my whole life, but I’m a very creative person, and this is a massive outlet for me.

Do you reckon you could pinpoint where that love for fashion came from, or has it just always been there?

I think it’s always been there, but you know, in football especially, dressing differently or expressing yourself through fashion has often been frowned upon — especially in previous years. For me, I just got to a point where I thought, ‘I’m going to express myself more.’ And don’t get me wrong, it came with its challenges — people would say, ‘What are you wearing?’ or ‘What are you doing?’ But at the end of the day, you’ve just got to be yourself and wear what you want to wear, and that’s what I started doing. At first, everyone was like, ‘That’s crazy,’ and now it’s more like, ‘Oh my, where can I get that from?’

It’s quite empowering, isn’t it? Just being able to wear whatever you want and not really care what people think.

Yeah, massively. And I think even that translates into football. What everyone else thinks doesn’t really matter. You’re in a stadium full of 6,000 or 10,000 people. They’re all screaming at you to do different things or saying you’re crap, or whatever. But it doesn’t really matter. You’ve worked hard to be where you are, so I don’t think it matters what anyone else thinks. That kind of translates across both areas.

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When did your modelling career start? Was it just a few years ago, or have you been doing it longer than that?

So I started modelling, I want to say around 2021, maybe. I can’t remember the exact year, but I got scouted in London and signed to a modelling agency and had a lot of opportunities through that. It kind of continued from there really. I walked for Burberry, which was amazing — walking with some of the most famous models in the world, and such a prestigious British brand. That was definitely a bucket-list moment for me. It is hard to do both, though. It’s a lot of juggling and managing availability. Obviously we’re training every day, and a lot of modelling shoots are in the mornings, so it’s just about having that flexibility and willpower to do both at the same time.

Did you immediately feel comfortable in front of the camera?

I think you warm up to it.

It doesn’t come naturally to everyone, does it?

No, I think again it’s like, you just can’t care what anyone else thinks. I feel like anyone who’s scared to get in front of the camera or do anything like that, it comes from outside pressure. Don’t get me wrong, the first time I was in front of the camera, I was scared; I was nervous. But you warm up to it, you learn to enjoy it — and now I love it.

You did Movember, didn’t you? Have you done any other charitable schemes, or was that the main one you’ve done so far?

That was the main one I’ve done. I’ve wanted to do something like that for a while, so doing Movember was fantastic — it felt really good. I’m actually looking to do more of those kinds of things in the future.

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When you build a profile as a sportsman, giving back to other people — I find that quite refreshing. Is that quite important to you?

Yeah, massively important. I feel like I touched on it earlier — as I’ve got older, and with the young boys coming in, wanting to help them do what you’ve done and excel, and even go beyond that, is so important to me. Seeing young players do well, or other people do well, genuinely makes me feel good. There are people out there who are way less fortunate than I am, so being able to give back — whether that’s boot giveaways or raising money for charities — is really important to me. It’s definitely something I’ll continue doing.

I know it’s probably a long way off as yet, but life beyond football — do you have any ambitions in the future?

I’m just building my brand at the moment, you know. I want to be a role model for people — that’s something I’m really passionate about. I want people to look at what I’m doing and think, ‘That’s really good. I love what he’s doing with helping other people and building others up.’ I do have a five-year plan, but that’s staying very much to myself for now. But yeah, I want to be seen as a role model, because I’d like people to look at what I’m doing and feel inspired to do the same — to help people. And the more people that do that, the more it just creates a kind of domino effect.

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