Criticism from Ghanaians doesn’t faze me
After noon, I am good, and how ar e you, br other ?
KM: G ood, thanks! You’ve been playing your best football since signing for the Enzo Maresca-led Leicester City. How is he getting the best out of you?
AFI:
It’s all about how he wants us to play and how he plans our appr oach towards each game. There is always a r eason why we win, and being in a winning team feels really good. Every day! Every time he (Maresca) wants you to improve and getbetter. After a game, or even before a game, during tr aining, he always tells you what to do and always guides you towar ds it. He always talks to you, so you need to be ready and always show a lot of hear t to get in (the team), and it’s r eally amazing to play under him.
KM: You joined a team with a heavy African influence, featuring the likes of Kelechi Iheanacho, Wilfred Ndidi and Patson Daka. How have they helped you acclimatize to life in Leicester and has their presence helped you settle?
AFI:
Yeah, you know, they have much more experience than me and I’m always r eady to listen to them as they are always ready to correctme and make me better . I feel so happy to play with them and to be with them in the same team, because they are always helping me and itmakes me very happy to have them as my teammates.
KM: You now seem to be fulfilling the potential many had envisaged for you after you won MVP at the U20 Afcon. However, this was not the case at the club where you made your first inroad into European football, Sporting CP. Why do you think it didn’t happen for you in Lisbon?
AFI:
I don’t think it’s a matter of it ‘not wor king out’ or something like that, it’s just a matter of what the coach (Ruben Amorim) wants. It’s aboutwhathe wants to do and how he plans his team. I think it was always good to join Spor ting and it is also an amazing team, I will not lie about that. It was good and it’s a nice team, butit’s all aboutthe coach and how he wants the team to play and the r ole he wants you to fulfil. I think, for now, this is how he wants it to be, so if he wants itin a particular way, then you have to listen and justfocus on trying to getbetter.
KM: Oh, so you think you didn’t fit into his plans?
AFI:
Yeah, that’s what I mean. It’s about how he wants me to play in r elation to how he wants the team to play. I think what he wants fr om me now is to go somewher e to play mor e minutes and getbetter.
KM: This lack of involvement with Sporting’s first team will have affected your inclusion in subsequent Black Stars squads, a team you first broke into at just 17. How do you feel about the constant criticism you faced from G hanaians in the past 18 months after being hailed as the next big thing only three years ago?
AFI:
You know, I’m still young and this thing is just a nor mal thing. I feel like this is only the beginning and I think I still have many years ahead. This cr iticism doesn’t r eally get to me because I am just a young boy coming up and I feel ther e will be mor e oppor tunities with the national team to come, so I haven’t r eally felt any disappointment fr om missing out r ecently.
KM: Do you think people have perhaps placed unnecessary pressure on you as far as the national team is concerned, considering your age?
AFI:
It’s the national team, you know, it’s a differ entthing, it’s notlike atclub level. Even if you are five years old, they will expectmor e fr om you, so this pr essur e is a nor mal thing in the national team.
KM: Ha, ha, of course! We speak about your lack of involvement with the Black Stars. Was it a knock to your confidence when you were dropped to the U23 side that tried to qualify for the Olympics?
AFI:
I was happy to be partof the U23s because the Olympics is a big tour nament as well and I wanted to be partof the tournamentbecause it’s one of the best. It’s justthatwe did not qualify, butI was happy to be there.
KM: That’s all in the past now, and Chris Hughton recently recalled you to the national team for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Madagascar and Comoros. How did it
feel to be back with the senior team, and what were the coach’s words to you about getting back on a regular basis?
AFI:
As I told you, I’m still young and Chr is is a good coach who tr ies to make you better . I always speak to him, even though sometimes I’m notin the team, but he’s always speaking to me. He watches my games, and he tells me things thatwill make me better . So, I know if I get mor e playing time and getgood per for mances, I’m going to be in the team again. To getback is justa
I
t seems strange to think that a teenager is having a resurgence in his football career, but that seems to be the case for Ghanaian wonderkid Abdul Fatawu Issahaku. After being dubbed one of the
best African prospects of his generation, the attacker initially struggled to translate his talents to the European stage, with fans back home even questioning his competency for the national team. Since making his move to Leicester City at the beginning of the season, however, he is dispelling that narrative with his performances for the Foxes! In this exclusive interview with Soccer Laduma international writer Kamogelo Motecwane, the 19-year-old pulls the curtain back on finding his feet at the King Power Stadium, his recall to the national team, their upcoming 2023 Africa Cup of Nations hopes, and words from Ghana boss Chris Hughton.
nor mal feeling because I’ve been ther e, so it’s not a new thing to get back to the team. Itwas good to r etur n because it was a nice feeling to see ever ybody again.
KM: Will you be heading to Afcon if called up, or are you more interested in further establishing yourself at Leicester?
AFI:
Itdepends on the situation, you know. Both sides, for me, are going to be good, so I can’t just say I have a particular one I wantto choose. For me, I justwantto play, so I justneed to know wher e I will be playing. If they call me and I am going to play, why not? I am going to the tournamentand if I stay her e too, it’s the same. Both sides are good for me.
KM: G reat! You played with Dreams FC and Steadfast FC in G hana, but what people may not know is that you were briefly at the Right to Dream academy, where the likes of Mohammed Kudus and Kamaldeen Sulemana were. Why do you think you were not able to follow in the footsteps of some of your national teammates?
AFI: I think it’s justaboutthe timing. For me, I don’tthink itwas because my per for mances wer en’t good enough, I justthink itwas something thatwasn’t meant to happen. Because after that, I leftRightto Dream for a different academy, before ultimately going to Steadfast FC. I think it wasn’t the place for me to getmy career started.
KM: You’ve been fantastic for Leicester this season, but maybe it hasn’t shown itself in goals and assists. In the next run of matches against Watford, West Bromwich Albion and Sheffield Wednesday, are you expecting to be more prolific?
AFI: Yeah, but sometimes it’s not aboutme scor ing. For me, it’s all about the team winning. I’d like to scor e, but I think, for me, even if I play well and don’t scor e, I’m okay. I want to scor e and I’m hoping to score in the next games, buteven if I don’tscor e and the team wins, that’s whatI want.
KM: It’s been at the King Power where you’ve found the most success since arriving in Europe. As you are currently there on a loan deal, would you like to stay at Leicester permanently?
AFI: Yeah, Premier League is my dr eam league, so I’m hoping to play there and since arriving, Leicester has given me a different feeling. How the people here have been has given me more confidence to stay here. For me, I’d be happy to stay in Leicester because I know and believe in the team, that we will qualify for the Pr emier League, so I’ll be happy to stay her e.
KM: Thank you, and all the best for the rest of the season.
AFI: