The incredible story of Ochieng

The ways of the Lord are no longer known. A biblical phrase that perfectly sums up the trajectory of Job Nguono Ochieng (Nairobi, Kenya, 2003) from his childhood until his dream came true: to become a professional footballer.

For many, this is the first time they read this name. It is the 20-year-old Kenyan striker from Real Sociedad C, who has brought about at least Real’s agreement with Maspalomas, the Canary Islands, where he hails from. He arrived last summer in a unique way that his agent detailed Mikel Aramaio in this newspaper. “The coach of the Maspalomas regional spoke to me saying that he has a Kenyan who is a show, and just by looking at him in a video I told him to bring him, that I will take some tests here .”

View and clock

Said and done, the Real, seeing the ‘highlights’ of the young man, accepted some tests that ouching He passed with flying colors, until an agreement was reached for his inclusion in the structure of the royalist club. However, a knee injury during his first days as txuri urdin “in the desire to be the fastest and to train without measuring the effort”, as he said in an interview with the Canarian newspaper La Provincia, kept him back until a few weeks ago

ouching, number 21 of the second royalist subsidiary, fulfilled his dream last Sunday, after several calls without minutes, by starting and making his debut in an hour game against Alavés B, in Zubieta. He didn’t score but the team won 1-0 and was able to celebrate the winning goal on the green. But it wasn’t all easy and fun until the last two days.

get to europe

The story begins in his native Nairobi, where he started playing soccer despite having no tradition in his family. After playing for the Express for a few years, a family friend was convinced ouching and the family that moved to Gran Canaria, to “a school where promising young people are trained in sports.” This means a monthly cost of 1,200 euros, which the player himself detailed in the aforementioned interview.

The family needs help to pay for it, and friends and family create a kind of economic fund. Of course, under a promise to return the money if the young man ouching He was successful in soccer. Too much pressure for a 17-year-old boy going to an unknown country, alone, a minor, and without a clue of Spanish.

Good ‘dribbling’ in life

Once on Spanish soil, the Kenyan boy dazzled very quickly. “He is a fast striker, with the ability to score, good handling of the ball with both legs and good dribbling. Physically he is powerful, with a great defensive sacrifice capacity”, he described Ricky Santanaplayer’s trusted person, in La Provincia.

However, good work in green has not prevented problems for ouching, who from one moment to the next found himself without a home or money. Because of the delay in monthly payments, the residence took out all of his street items in a garbage bag while he was at the beach. Panic should be important.

another profile

Luckily, the striker overcame that hole and ended up signing for Maspalomas, where he excelled for three seasons before Real caught his eye last summer, when he was 19 years old. old

Now he faces an exciting future in a youth academy like Zubieta, where he already left great feelings in his debut, after months of recovery thanks to a personalized process from Real. “It’s a profile that doesn’t exist in Zubieta either physically or by characteristics, it reminds me a bit of Isaac Because of its height, finesse and speed, it is very fast. It’s different ”, studies Mundo Deportivo Daniel Ugarte, an expert scout in Basque grassroots football. His agent told MD that the player is “eternal grateful and very happy for the wonderful treatment” of the club during the injury and for giving him a chance and betting on him from the beginning “he was hardly seen .” “Before the tests he was half injured and before signing the contract he was diagnosed with a knee injury,” he said. Now it’s up to ouching restore trust. His path began as another txuri urdin.