Ex-international, Mutiu Adepoju has disclosed that his friends named him coconut head while he was younger because of his ability to head the ball well.
Adepoju scored a brace in the semi-final of the U-20 world cup in 1989 against the USA to lead Nigeria to a silver medal finish.
In an exclusive interview on the Family United by Football, FUBF social media platform, Adepoju said “I did not just come at it, it is something I am used to since when I was young. I realized the ability, I nurtured and (I) was able to perfect it. The coaches I have played under knowing I have this talent also have used it to their advantage. My friends even called me coconut head while younger.”
Explaining how he got the name, headmaster, the former Real Madrid man said Nigerian journalists gave him the name.
“The nickname came from my ability to score goals with my head.I have scored a lot of goals at U-20, national team and at my (different) club sides with my head. The Editor and GM of complete Sports then, Mumuni Alao actually gave me the name.”
Adepoju represented Nigeria at three different world cup tournaments (1994, 1998 and 2002) scoring in the 3-2 victory over Spain in 1998.
