Former Beşiktaş forward Esse Akida is on the verge of releasing a biography dubbed ‘Chained’ that details her life from a tender age to tormenting defenders for fun in the UEFA Women’s Champions League.Mozzart Sport had the privilege of receiving a snippet of the much anticipated book that is set to be released on a soon to be announced date. The book is however currently available on pre-order.Here is an inciting snippet of the chapter “Being a ‘REBEL’”I featured for the national team, Harambee Starlets under different coaches since my debut in 2012. I was not able to feature under Richard Kanyi; a period where I had a hard time with the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) but each incident was explained to the coach.##NAJAVA_MECA_8269547##After the Africa Women’s Cup of Nations (AWCON) heartache and the reality that I was not going to go pro, I went back home to help Moving The Goal Post (MTG) with their programs in empowering young women footballers in Kilifi County. They had given me a lot and felt I needed to help them nurture the next generation of starlets. MTG had an event in 2017 in the United States of America that unfortunately coincided with Harambee Starlets’ assignment in the COSAFA invitational tournament that was to be hosted in Zimbabwe. I had asked one federation official earlier in 2017 if there was a drawn plan for Harambee Starlets that year so that I could plan my calendar well but no answer was forthcoming. And with the push and pull that had come with our AWCON allowances, I thought going to the USA was a wise idea because we were going to be paid in those games. We had been playing in the qualifications for that year’s Street Football and qualified for the final showpiece that was to be held in the USA.So MTG did the due diligence to apply for our visa early enough and we had them ready before I got a call from the Federation that I was going to be called for COSAFA duty. It was an honour to be recognised but explained to them why I could not make the trip to Zimbabwe. AFC Leopards boss Trucha content with new signings ahead of new seasonKanyi himself called me and I explained the same reasons to him and he sounded convinced in our talk. But before I could even make it to the USA, a rumour surfaced that I had snubbed the national team and chose to play in some meaningless tournament in the USA. I had received abuse on social media and they affected me in a way. I was labelled a rebel and one who promised not to play for the national team until ourAWCON allowance was fully paid. I even had an altercation with one Federation official online, in which I told him that anyone who asked for what was rightfully theirs ought not to be punished but that move saw me stay in the cold for more than three years. I have had my fair share of problems with the national team. It is not always a rosy ride but I have enjoyed every bit of it. I had instances where I felt that I had had enough with the national team but the urge to represent my country has been too much for me to run away from. ##NAJAVA_MECA_8269442##Coach David Ouma has been one coach who pushed me to the limit but there are instances I felt he picked the wrong things about me. Maybe he wanted me to do more. Maybe he had some forces that forced him to test me in camp. I was treated differently whenever I was in camp and I just did not get the reason behind it. There is a teammate who had asked if Ouma had hit on me before and if I had refused his advances because the treatment offered sometimes was out of the norm and my teammates would easily notice. I remember in an important AWCON Qualifier game against Equatorial Guinea at Kenyatta Stadium Machakos in 2018, Ouma started me on the bench despite having had a perfect training session. I would be lying if I said I was happy with the role. I hate being on the bench and I had made it known to him when the starting team was announced. The slight alteration did not make my place at the team easier too going by how he treated me but I was tired and even thought calling me up was not worth it under him.PRE-ORDERWe have entered into an agreement with @NuriaStore for the purchase of my upcoming memoir. You can start purchasing link>>https://t.co/sO8QEXU9mYThe Pre-Orders will be delivered on the launch date.#Akida_14 #CHAINED #WomenFootball pic.twitter.com/jDlDc0mPuM— Esse Akida (@akida_14) August 7, 2024 Before the game, rumours again had flown around that I had been staying at an unknown place when we were given a short break in camp. It was far from the truth as I spent the night in one of my teammate’s places. I had no money to make it back to Kilifi to have time with my family and since it was just a one-day break, I just saw it wise to hang around. On my return, Ouma had picked some wrong news and was on my case. He said I had spent at an unknown place despite my teammate telling him a different story. He was convinced that we had colluded to lie to him. I did not get it because we were all given a break and if I wanted to see a man, as he claimed, I would, because I was dating then. But with all the jibes directed at me in the team meeting, I did not say a word as I did not want to spoil the mood in camp but I had heard enough. I just sat there but the words had hit me hard. The training before the game was not the same again. I just wanted to leave.
