Harambee Stars Midfielder Richard Odada Football Journey From Kajiado To Denmark
Richard Odada during his Foundation drive at Rongai in Kajiado County.
Richard Odada is a Kenyan international footballer who plays as a central midfielder. The 23-year-old is one of the promising Kenyan footballers at the moment. Odada was born and raised in Rongai a town located in Kajiado County.
The Harambee Stars midfielder began his football career at a very tender age at Nakeel Primary School where he attended his primary education. In an exclusive interview with Sports Brief Odada said, “We used to play between class breaks and I realized it was something I loved doing. I played in almost every position before I settled on honing my skills as a midfielder.”
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After Nakeel Primary, Richard Odada joined Laiser Hill Academy in Nairobi for his high school education where his football career propelled to a higher notch. Laiser Hill Academy is a giant in secondary school games where he represented the country in East Africa games multiple times with the school.
In the interview, Odada disclosed that former Harambee Stars captain Victor Wanyama was his role model while growing up. “I drew inspiration from Wanyama when I watched him play in the top leagues. His story is almost similar to mine in terms of his struggles, but he pushed himself nonetheless to the very top.”
Stop that, @VictorWanyama… 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/aPXy1NJJIQ
— Premier League (@premierleague) June 23, 2023
Wanyama is the only Kenyan footballer to have played in English Premier League. Odada also looks at Manchester United’s and Scotland Midfielder Scott McTominay.
Odada’s Europe breakthrough came at the age of 17 while playing for Kenya Premier League U20 with Elite Academy. The management was impressed with him as they recommended him for trials in European clubs and was signed by Serbian Heavyweights Red Star Belgrade.
At only 17 years of age, Odada left Kenya to chase his dreams abroad. Red Star Belgrade sent him out on loan to Grafičar Beograd where he picked one of his first lessons in European football.
Speaking to Sports Brief Odada said, “Consistency is what makes you stand out. There are at least three players in your position and for you to feature in the matchday squads, you have to put your best foot forward. They demand the best out of you.”
After three years at Red Star Belgrade, Odada decided to take another step after quitting from Serbian side and moved to Major League Soccer in Denmark, where he signed with Philadelphia Union in 2022. Though the move did not work out as expected, and he moved back to Europe, with Danish second-tier side Aalborg BK signing him on loan.
It is in Denmark where his career took off, with Aalborg BK currently in second position in the race to qualify for the Danish topflight next season. AaB are one point behind Sonderjyske who are top of the table. Odada has scored 4 goals and 1 assist after 12 appearances for the club and with four more games remaining, he yearns for more as he wants to win the title, “Our current position is enough to qualify for the first division, but we plan to win the league.”
The Kenyan footballer also has his foundation, Richard Odada Foundation, which he began recently with a series of charity drives.
He says that children struggle with societal vices like drug abuse, crime and early pregnancies. Now a role model in Rongai, he wants to use his position to inspire others to better lives.
“People are struggling out here. It is not easy for one to get their hands on something that can be a means of livelihood. I have worked on providing shoes, kits and food around my community. I intend to make it a long-term project. The little that I have I will always share with the society to open them to new frontiers.” Odada said.
Odada has at least 100 girls he supports at the moment with the hope that he will one day see them playing professionally. He also plans to provide self-sustaining courses like tailoring.
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