Osman eager to fashion a Jags win over Rangers
There are relatively few footballers who have successfully launched their own clothing lines and, unsurprisingly, they tend to be stellar names such as Lionel Messi, Neymar, Cristiano Ronaldo, David Beckham and Zlatan Ibrahamovic. Plus Abdul Osman.
The Partick Thistle captain is set to join that select band after the world’s third-most expensive player, Manchester United and France star Paul Pogba, endorsed Osman’s range on his Twitter account.
Now the Ghana-born holding midfielder – who will lead his team out against Rangers at Firhill tonight – envisions a career on the catwalk once he hangs up his boots and it’s all down to the shoulder injury which sidelined him for four months earlier in the season.
“You have a lot of free time on your hands when you are out for so long,” he said. “You see [goalkeeper] Tomas Cerny reading books in the changing room but you think: ‘You know what, my passion is fashion so why not start something and see how it gets on?’
“It’s been going all right so far and I’ve been getting a lot of support, from guys like Paul Pogba. He was around when I was down in Manchester seeing his brother, my old Thistle team-mate Mathias, and he was asking me about my stuff.
“He said he liked it and asked me to send some things through. I gave him a hat and a t-shirt. To be honest, I didn’t think he’d wear them but he stuck it up on social media. I knew then it would go a long way and it really took off.
“There’s been loads of interest. [Former Chelsea, West Ham and Celtic forward] Carlton Cole was also on Soccer Am wearing my stuff so a few people are liking it and it’s going well. Some of the players in our squad and others down south have been in touch about buying some.”
Osman could raise his brand’s profile considerably by helping to end a 29-match winless run against tonight’s opponents (six draws, 23 defeats) which stretches back to 1993.
“It’s been a long time but we’ve been unlucky in a few games against them recently,” he said. “Last season there were a couple of last-minute goals for them, which was disappointing.
“It was close this year as well but we know they are a team we can beat. We’re going in full of confidence.”