By Saheed Afolabi
The Manager and head coach of Ghetto Tigers, Azeez Mustapha has revealed that the club is a pacesetter in setting International standards for players at the grassroots.
The Pride Odi-olowo Ojuwoye LCDA launched their new jerseys for the 2024/2025 season to keep up with classic practice among foreign professional clubs.
Mustapha said the purpose of the jersey launch is to set a practice of international standards and progressive mentality unto the club’s players.
The head coach believes the club has expanded their coast of competing by participating in the Ikeja Divisional League which has greatly improved the players.
He disclosed that Ghetto Tigers has now become the pride of the community while foreign players enlist in the club.
“The jersey launch is to build a progressive mentality into the players despite the fact that, they are grassroots players which they can’t be forever, and they are going to be international players and world class players.
“We need to expose the players to world class standard, world class mentality and that’s what we are trying to do with this jersey unveiling.
“We are playing in the Ikeja Divisional League and it’s our debut season there, it’s a new water for us and the players are trying to acclimatize on the new turf and we believe even with the launch of the new jerseys the players morale will go up and it will help us in the results we are going to get in the coming days.
“Both our boys and girls team play in the divisional league and like what the chairman (Rasaq Ajala) said, we might just decide to go to the NNL but basically it’s in the plan because we can’t play divisional league forever. The long term goal is making it to the top tier of Nigeria football.
“Ghetto Tigers became the rallying point of all football clubs in the community and parents now believe in the club. Ilupeju is an industrial estate and we have about seven to eight Indian players registered at the club, so for foreigners to actually believe in what you are doing, that means you are doing something right.
“The community have owned the club, Ghetto Tigers is now the love child of Odi-olowo Ojuwoye community. The residents even offer to pay the transport farea of some players when they meet, because they see the club as their own. So they have adopted us as the child of Odi-olowo Ojuwoye community.
