Harambee Starlets striker Esse Akida on Tuesday revealed her latest project aimed at offering a deeper look into her football journey, riddled with winning moments and a “fair share of challenges.”The project comes in the form of a book dubbed “Chained”, where Akida, 31, tells the story of an 11-year-old kid playing at Moving The Goalposts in 2002, that ends up making giant steps abroad, up until her recently-ended spell at PAOK FC in Greece.The auto-biography, scheduled for a late August release, also carries with it the aim of publicizing women’s football in Kenya, as its author Zachary Oguda tells Mozzart Sport.“After writing my first book – Away From Victory – it was always my plan to do something that would encompass women’s football in Kenya,” Oguda, also a sports journalist, says. “The idea was to get women footballers to share with me some of their stories and I am glad that Esse was willing to do just that.”My football journey has had its fair share of challenges and that’s why, with the help of @zaxoguda, I have decided to come up with a manuscript dubbed CHAINED.From my days at MTG to PAOK, my national team outing to winning titles abroad, this is my story.#akida_14#CHAINED pic.twitter.com/svd9j2nAzS— Esse Akida (@akida_14) July 23, 2024 As Akida puts it in her tweet, the book offers an extra-different look into Akida’s life, which Oguda describes as “different.”“We have a mix of her footballing life, and real life outside of football,” Oguda says. “From the outside there is this story of career progress and excitement, but also a look into the world of feeling chained.”Oguda goes on to briefly expound on the book’s title: “Without giving much away, Esse on a personal level has not had that kind of a linear life that everyone thinks about. It’s completely different. She has had to deal with issues emotionally and psychologically that unfortunately give the impression of someone who’s never felt free in her life.”##NAJAVA_MECA_8229038##The book however just doesn’t talk of a sad tale, but also of her triumphs, including winning multiple golden boots and league titles at PAOK.“There was a time we thought she would quit playing football,” Oguda adds. “From that, to the success she has gone on to achieve is just a great story that also goes ahead to communicate to fellow women footballers in the country.”Akida, who made her Harambee Starlets debut in 2012, is currently a free agent after parting ways with PAOK.Esse Akida departs PAOK after three trophy-laden seasons
