Nigeria Football: Chief Taiwo Ogunjobi is holding me to ransom - Kayode

Nigeria U20 striker Olanrewaju Kayode has accused former NFF boss Taiwo Ogunjobi of standing between him and a transfer to Europe.

However, Ogunjobi has been quick to dismiss the allegation against him, saying the player still belongs to Ivorian club Asec. 

Kayode featured for Nigeria at the recent FIFA U20 World Cup in Turkey and he has several offers to move overseas, but his transfer papers are still with Asec Mimosas, who the player has insisted he no longer has a contract with.

The striker, who this year signed for Heartland in the Nigeria league, told MTNFootball.com he has not moved principally because Ogunjobi has insisted he be transferred abroad through Asec.

“Chief Taiwo Ogunjobi is holding me to ransom, he is standing between me and my career and I want Nigerians to know this,” a very bitter Kayode opened up.

“First, he told me that I will go on loan to Asec and when I got to Abidjan, I did not sign a contract with Asec because he told me he did everything on my behalf.

“I have never had a copy of my contract with Asec and it was only when I got to Lucerne in Switzerland that the club got something close to this contract when they demanded for it.

“I have tried to reach Ogunjobi several times on this matter and he has rebuffed my pleas for him to let me go.”

But Ogunjobi has told MTNFootball.com he is not the stumbling block between Kayode and a foreign deal.

He said he will never work against the progress of Kayode or any Nigerian player and that Asec are in the best position to talk about contract situation of the Nigeria U20 striker.

"How will he say he doesn't have a contract with Asec Mimosas? I don't have much to say on it because any explanation I give here will be seen as a defence but if you can contact any Asec official, they will tell you the true position on Kayode's contract,” said the Oshun State FA boss.

“I have a name to protect, how will I agree that a player owned by another club should be transfer through another club.

“I will be glad if you can dig deep and get to ASEC for clarification. As we all know, the transfer of a player is done between club and club."

Ogunjobi told MTNFootball.com Kayode was loaned to Lucerne in Switzerland, but never returned to his parent club Asec after the expiration of the loan deal

Kayode’s Germany-based agent Emeka Ezeala further told MTNFootball.com that in January he and Ogunjobi agreed that efforts should be geared towards getting the player out of Asec.

“I have spoken to Ogunjobi on this matter several times and we even reached an agreement in January that the player be moved out of Asec. But now that the boy wishes to move, Ogunjobi is insisting that he can only move from Asec!

“He said Heartland cannot reap where they did not sow.

“The future of this boy is at stake. And if care is not taken, he will rut in Nigeria for nothing.”

MTNFootball.com is in possession of a one-page “amended contract” purportedly between Asec and Kayode, which was translated from French to English and which is the only document the player has as a copy of the contract with the Ivorian club.

The “contract” said Kayode on February 16 2010 signed a contract with Asec for three years, which entitles him to a monthly salary of 300,000 FCFA (about 99,000 Naira) with Ogunjobi earning 150,000 FCFA for the 2011 season.

The player will then receive 400,000FCFA monthly for the 2012 season with Ogunjobi pocketing an additional 150,000 FCFA.

The contract was signed by Asec president Roger Ouegnin, but the player insisted the signatures on the documents are not his.

Asec have reportedly maintained they have a contract with Kayode until November 2014 and have turned down a request by the NFF to surrender the player’s International Transfer Certificate (ITC).

Recently a proposed transfer for Kayode to Tunisian club Esperance fell through, while Croatian club Hadjuk Split have improved on an initial offer for the player.

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