Emmanuel Okwi: The re-invention of an immense talent

What you need to know:

  • LEARNING FROM THE PAST. Okwi must continue to apply himself like he has over the past couple of months. He is much older and wiser. He has also been round the block long enough to know that one cannot enjoy endless second-chances.

At the end of 2016, I shared my dismay at the exclusion of Emmanuel Okwi from the Afcon 2017 squad, and attempted to explain what had gone wrong for a talent of such promise, who we all considered as the natural heir to David Obua’s throne as King of Ugandan football.

But that was five months ago, at a time when Okwi was caught up somewhere between Denmark and Uganda, and doing everything to live up to the stereotype of our professional footballers - broken and broke.

Then he signed for SC Villa. As we speak, Okwi has found his scoring boots and the love of the game. He has also worked his way back to the national team. And at 25 years old, I believe he still has a lot to offer going into the World Cup 2018 and Afcon 2019 qualifiers.

So, what flipped the switch for this man to such an extent that his eternal admirers Simba of Tanzania, whom he dumped twice, are making fresh inquiries about his availability?
I can only speculate, because I find it hard to explain the progress of a player that has been so erratic.

But even then, there is one common factor that has followed or undone him everywhere he has gone.

Okwi is a poor traveler and quick to succumb to homesickness. People say it is the food of his forefathers, specifically a fish delicacy known as ‘angara’.

To be honest it could be that and many other things, ranging from language to weather.

What this tells me though, is that the boy is only capable of playing his football in a familiar environment. It’s just in his psyche and nothing to be apologetic about.

This is demonstrated not only by his explosion on the scene a couple of years back, but also his re-invention at SC Villa over the past few months.

It could also explain why a man of his capabilities never settled in Italy, Denmark, Austria, Tunisia or Tanzania.

But the boy must continue to apply himself like he has over the past couple of months, if he is to vindicate my theory.
And I like to think that now he is much older and wiser, and this will indeed be the case. He has been round the block so many times that he will know that one cannot enjoy endless second-chances.

This might mean that he must also ignore all overtures from Simba no matter how lucrative.

He is clearly beyond the stage where he can continue to experiment with what will or will not work.

Let him focus on SC Villa, a place where he seems to have gotten a new lease of life.

The money will not be nearly as good as he would make at Simba, but if money was his only motivation then his professional stints wouldn’t have been the disastrous affairs they were.
For Okwi it’s time to find success at home and he seems to be well on his way.

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@MBanturaki