The Ivorian football team is set to take on Senegal in the qualifiers for the African Football Cup of Nations, featuring a player of Nigerian origin, Abdul Razak. The Manchester City midfielder earned his debut with the Elephants during the friendly match against Russia on August 15, which took place as part of FIFA Day.
Abdul Razak’s impressive performance in his first outing with the Elephants garnered widespread attention, leading the coach to include him in the squad for the upcoming match against Senegal. Expressing his pride in joining Sabri Lamouchi’s team, Razak stated, “It is a great pleasure for me to join the Elephants. It’s a dream come true, and I am very happy to learn from my big brothers.”
Despite being sought after by the Super Eagles of Nigeria, Abdul Razak chose to don the orange tunic of the Elephants. Born in Adjamé, he has spent his entire life in Ivory Coast and was adopted by football luminaries like Drogba, Yaya, Kolo, and Boka. Reflecting on his childhood, Razak emphasized, “I did all my classes here, and I always wanted to play with the Elephants of Côte d’Ivoire. I have no affinity for Nigeria, so I feel good in orange-white-green.”
Anticipation is high among the Ivorian people to see Razak in action against Senegal on September 8. Since joining Manchester City in 2010, Razak had loan spells at Brighton and Hove Albion and Portsmouth before officially joining the Citizens last year.
