It’s official. 19-year old Gor Mahia defender Frank Odhiambo has joined Swedish giants Djurgardens on a five-year deal.✍️ Välkommen till Stockholms stolthet! pic.twitter.com/qMYov754SM— Djurgården Fotboll (@DIF_Fotboll) January 19, 2022 The club announced the development on its social platforms as well as on its official portal. Djurgardens was home to Kenyan striker Michale Olunga, who, somehow, played a part in Frank’s move to the club.“I heard about Djurgården 2016 when Michael Olunga started playing there. Then I and many other Kenyans became Djurgården fans and that was how I got to know the team. So I am very happy and expectant to come to Djurgården. This will be a new challenge and platform for me in my career,” Frank is quoted as saying by the club’s portal.“Michael gave me a lot of good advice and he told me that it was a fantastic association that has a good philosophy and incredible supporters. Another big reason why I chose Djurgården was that I hope to be able to follow in Olunga’s footsteps, so that I can develop into an even better player in that environment. Djurgården is a good team for young players who want to get the best out of their careers and are good at guiding players in their development.” He added.Frank also reveals he chose Djurgardens as he is eager to develop into a better player and he’s convinced is the right club to achieve that having done the same with Olunga.“I had many different clubs that offered contracts so I sat down and discussed with my agent what was best. There were teams in France, Belgium and Lithuania, among others, but I chose Sweden and Djurgården,” he said,“I am hungry and want to show what I can do. I like to work hard and look forward to fighting for a place on the team. Then cohesion is important to me and I always play for the team’s best. I usually have it easy for me socially so I will hopefully get into the team quickly, get to know everyone properly and then contribute out on the field. I also try to be a leader and help my teammates on the field,”##EDITORS_CHOICE##“My dream is to come to Sweden and adapt to the level as soon as possible. I know that I will come to a good environment and will continue the hard work that has taken me to where I am now. In the long run, I will try to take a place in the starting eleven and contribute to both my own development and success for Djurgården – this is my goal right now. I want to develop with Djurgården as a platform and then maybe even bigger challenges await later.” He added.Djurgarden Sports Director Bosse Andersson was also excited with the club’s latest acquisition.“We followed Frank in the Kenyan league with Gor Mahia where he achieved great success and became Player of the Month and also when he played internationally in the African Champions League. He has had a strong development spiced with national team games in and so we started a discussion,” he said,“It is no secret that it was Michael Olunga who lit the spark in September when Frank was with him in the Kenyan national team. There were interests from other European clubs as well. But Frank has clear ambitions for what he wants and feels safe coming to Djurgården after taking part in Michael’s experiences,”Kenyan defender Frank Odhiambo (19) moves from Gor Mahia to Swedish powerhouse Djurgården Fotboll. Frank becomes the second Kenyan to be signed by a Swedish Allsvenskan side following forward Henry Meja’s (20) move from Tusker to AIK Stockholm.Kenya 🇰🇪 has talent! https://t.co/T53P1MF4Vh— East Africa Eye (@theeaeye) January 19, 2022 “The central defensive has not been the position we are primarily looking for, but the project itself is very exciting. When we had the dialogue with Frank, where Michael Olunga was also very involved, we noticed that Frank was extremely determined and wanted to come to a developing environment that he knows. So we talked and this was a project that we all had great faith in. The key word is patience when he comes here and develops and then hopefully takes the step further out into Europe. The timing was very good and we think he will grow into this in the long term,”“Frank is physically strong and wants to participate offensively in the build-up game, he is not afraid to move forward on the field. In addition, he has shown that he is dangerous in the opponents’ penalty area so it will be interesting to follow his progress.” He concluded.
