A 2023 Africa Cup of Nations star has now admitted that he was once scammed into joining a fake academy while on his inspirational journey to becoming professional footballer.
On Saturday night, with Ivory Coast on the verge of bowing out of the competition in front of thousands of anxious home supporters, Simon Adingra stepped up to reignite their hopes with a 90th-minute strike that took the game to extra-time, in which Oumar Diakite scored the winning goal that sent the Elephants to the penultimate round of the tournament.
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The 22-year-old thus achieved the dream of scoring of scoring a decisive goal for his country at a major competition, but becoming a footballer at the highest level almost did not happen for the Brighton Hove Albion star after he and his family were scammed into an opportunity that very nearly ruined his life.
"As a kid, I played in the street in my neighbourhood. From a very young age, football was my passion. I saw the journey of big brothers like Didier Drogba and I wanted to imitate them," Adingra revealed, per YOP L-FRII.
"Seeing me playing in the street, an acquaintance said to me: 'Simon, it would be better if you were supervised in a training center.'
"I then joined a centre in Abidjan where I trained twice a week. I trained on Wednesdays and Saturdays, while continuing my school career."
He went on to say that someone then approached his parents, saying he knew a good academy in Benin that was on the lookout for players of his calibre.
His father, who has since passed away, agreed and paid the man €300 (about R6 100), and Adingra departed for the new journey with nine other young Ivorians. Things, however, did not turn out as he may have expected.
"Actually, this guy was a crook. He made it all up and left with our money. There was no Academy or accommodation for us on site. All 10 of us were in Benin, at the age of 12, left to our own devices without anyone's help," the forward continued.
"We didn't even have money to feed ourselves. There were then two possibilities: either return to Ivory Coast, or wait and see if an opportunity came along. We decided to all stay together and do odd jobs to start earning money. For example, we washed plates in restaurants in exchange for a little money and meals."
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While things looked bleak for the 10 youngsters who may have given up on their hopes and aspirations of reaching the pinnacle of the beautiful game, their fortunes changed as they were put back on their desired path.
"One day, we were walking down the street and a guy who studied in Ivory Coast recognised our Ivorian accent," Adingra explained.
"He was surprised to find around 10 young Ivorians in Benin. We explained the situation to him and he was scandalised by the conditions in which we lived.
"He did everything to find us another house and had the idea of creating a small football academy with the nine young people and me. Over time, other players joined the centre and it became a real academy in Benin.
"One day he saw on the Internet that a tournament was taking place in Accra, Ghana. We went to play there... During the tournament in Ghana, recruiters from the 'Right To Dream' Academy were charmed by my performances. They then offered me a two-week test at their fairly renowned training center.
"There, everything was very professional with great organisation and qualified coaches. It wasn't easy for me at first, because I didn't speak English.
"In the morning, we all had a moment of prayer before going to school. In the afternoon, we had training. I stayed there for two years and I played with Kamaldeen Sulemana, who is currently playing at Southampton, and Mohammed Kudus from Ajax (at West Ham currently)."
After leaving the Right to Dream academy, Adingra joined the youth set-up at Norwegian club Nordsjaelland, where he was promoted to the first team in 2021.
The Ivorian then moved to Brighton the following year, where he currently plies his trade. This season, he has made 23 appearances, bagging five goals and three assists as he looks to cement himself as one of the most sought-after players in world football.
His goal against Mali was his first-ever AFCON goal. The winger will, however, be hoping that it is just one of many more to come, starting with the Elephants semi-final clash against DR Congo on Wednesday.
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