To understand the intrigues of Segun Odegbami’s life, you must first understand the absolute tyranny of his youth. When he was 17, he possessed the sensitive hands of an artist, destined for poetry, illustration, and the scenic flurry of a canvas. Then came football, swallowing him whole and turning him into a household name across Africa; a celebrity so colossal that a simple factory visit could shut down an entire corporate plant for a day. Today, at 74, the stadium roars have faded into the quiet of a solitary existence. Odegbami rarely replays old matches in his head, nor does he long for the multi-million-dollar European salaries of contemporary football. From the profound lessons of unconditional fatherhood to his enduring, post-romance alliance with Oyinda Adeyemi, he proves that his greatest victory isn’t a silver trophy, but his unshakeable grip on his own integrity. Instead, as his body ages, reminding him of his mortality, Odegbami, also known as Mathematical Odegbami, in this interview with LANRE ALFRED, looks forward with a striking,
urgent clarity to a more fruitful, selfless twilight. Here are excerpts:
You recently turned 74. When you look in the mirror today, who do you see, the footballer millions of Nigerians remember, or a completely different Segun Odegbami?
