Ghana international, Alidu Seidu, has opened up on an experience in the past which nearly took his life.
The Stade Rennais FC defender was born in Kumasi, Ghana, and notes that he had a tough time growing up.
“I grew up in a very tough, very violent area. Being around friends who were into that lifestyle and hanging out on the streets made me a bit aggressive and mean.
“We walked the streets with knives or machetes, I committed thefts, vandalism, and small-time trafficking. My mother was always crying, and sometimes I ran away at night to avoid my father punishing me. Fortunately, my uncle was there and pushed me towards football because he knew I had something. He always supported me, and football saved my life,” Alidu Seidu told Ouest-France in an interview.
According to Seidu, he mingled with the wrong crowd when he was young and got struck in the head one time with a machete during a clash between gangs in a street fight.
After the incident, Seidu recounted, “I lost a lot of blood, I couldn’t speak… Everyone thought I was going to die.”
He strongly believes that he is lucky he found a career in football, insisting that it significantly impacted his life and changed it positively.
“It puts things into perspective. I’m still lucky to have become a professional player, to be here. I always try to turn the negative side into something positive, it’s in my character,” Alidu Seidu added.
