Newly Appointed Gateway United Football Club Manager Lauds State Government’s Massive Contribution, Vows To Give All As He Eyes Top Flight Promotion

Newly appointed Gateway United Football Club Manager, Abayomi Oludanre Osunsanya has voiced his aspirations for the team in an exclusive interview session with sports247.ng, his appointment details, his dreams and aspirations, top flight promotiona, while also commending the immense support of the state government led by Prince Sapp Abiodun.

His culled interview sessions:

*Finally we have a date for the NNL, How does this make you feel?*

Well, it makes me feel very good as a football person. NNL as we all know has been off for a year if not more than so for the authority to hold a meeting and give a date of 31st of January, 2021. I think it’s a very good thing. All the players that have been rusty, all match officials and refereees even those who sell things around the stadium will be happy for football will be the winner.

*We learnt that this appointment just came newly.*

Yes it’s a new appointment, I was in Abuja late last year when the honorable commissioner for youths and sports in Ogun State, Dr Kehinde Oluwadare sent for me that I had no choice but to leave whatever I was doing out there and come to see him. He sat me down and then told me what the team wants and asked me if I would love to work as the team manager and I said Well, I would have loved to be the general manager of the team but certainly the way things work sometimes only God can say. Like have always told him in the past, any opportunity to serve my state is welcomed by me. It’s not a must to be general manager. We are all managing even the cleaner is managing cleaning materials and what have you. The players must manage thier time and space on the field of play so fortunately the man at the helm of affairs is a brother to me.

I’ve known him for like forever since he was with Leventis United in Ibadan in those days as club Secretary, he has come a long way and seen it all. His experiences, he knows everybody and everybody knows him and I know that with the little I know as well can be combined to the glory of Ogun State and above all to God’s glory.

*Now that you have received the future of the team, How ready is gateway?*

Well, never in the history of football as any team been 100% ready. Barcelona is still training, they are still looking for players same as Liverpool, Chelsea and gateway inclusive. We are almost ready and that’s in a bit to be more ready hence why we are playing this afternoon’s game. You can see that the net has been fixed, the field moulded, lines on it and a good weather, Kick off is 3pm so we are here to do justice to what we ought to do best and we hope that this afternoon’s game will help us towards atleast 90% readiness before the season kicks off.

*Having this game means there must have been series of friendlies because the league is starting soon…*

Usually we plan ahead, we have stopped at today’s game because we were thinking maybe next weekend. If it’s next weekend, then we may only be able to accommodate one game maybe Monday, Tuesday depending on whether we are playing at home or away. But as it is now, after today’s game, I will see down with my crew and map out because we have been receiving some invitations, calls with people asking to come and play us and us to come and play them in thier home ground so we will look at how many matches we can accommodate because we still have to train as well and not just matches alone. We have to play matches as well as train so we have to look at a way that will not make the boys too fatigued before the season kicks off but definitely now that we know the date of the league, 31st of January we will be able to accommodate one or two games before then.

*How motivated are the players of Gateway United Football Club ahead of the new season?*

I give kudos to the government ably led by Prince Dapo ABIODUN and then down to the Secretary of the state governments, chief of staff, commissioner for sports, Hon. Dr. Oluwakehinde Dare. They have been doing so much for the club to the extent that during the corona period, when we were all locked in our various homes, the players and officials were receiving thier salaries. They didn’t even cut it into half, they were all being paid in full and then during the Christmas and New Year break, they gave all the players life chicken and a quarter bag of rice each even officials and cleaners went home with same gifts including myself. We can only ask for more anyway but if you ask me, Ogun State Government is doing very well for the players and officials.

Having said that, we still have one or two things we would like to have for example, when we met the commissioner two days ago, we told him that we could like to go into close camping and he said that you can not go into close camping and then come out again and start your season in three or four weeks and we agreed with him.

So he said as soon as they give a definite date for the start of the league, come back with this request and we will do something about it. We are looking into that and by God’s grace, we promise fans, sponsors which is the state government, well wishers that Gateway United Football Club will be a force to be reckoned with as it used to be in the past, will continue to be like that and by God’s grace, the elusive promotion ticket will soon be in our hands.