The dream of most footballers is to see their children follow in their footsteps for both club and country and probably surpass their achievements.
To that extent children of many footballers struggle to meet expectations and most times end up not even having a fulfilled career but that might not be the case with the son of ex Nigeria international Ikpe Ekong.
His son Emmanuel Ekong has broken into the first team set up at Italian Serie A side Empoli. He has progressed from the youth team to the main team where he has made the bench in their first two games of the season against Spezia and Fiorentina respectively.
Born in Sweden to a Nigerian father and a Swedish father, the 20 year old is seen as one of the brightest prospect in the set up of several youth teams in Italy. He made his mark by scoring frequently for the main team in pre season.
As he awaits his senior debut, a fine season will no doubt trigger a tug of war between Nigeria and Sweden for his senior international future. Already he has played for Sweden at U21 level but he is keen on following in the footsteps of his father who played over 15 games for Nigeria.
” It’s up to him to decide his international career. I know how he feels about playing for Nigeria but I won’t be the one to decide for him. Already he is a youth international for Sweden and as for Nigeria I won’t beg for him to be called up to the senior team. He should focus on his club career for now”, he told OwnGoalNigeria.com.
