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| Obomate Frederick |
Football
Obomate Frederick is back to
action after making a complete recovery from an injury that kept him out of
competitive football for five months.
United midfield general,
Obomate, wowed plenty with his uncompromising, all action style which saw him
scoop the award as the NPFL’s best player in the opening month of the last
campaign.
The midfielder played an
important role in helping United finish as runners up behind eventual
champions, Enugu Rangers in last season’s NPFL title race.
His performances waned
noticeably towards the close of last season as a result of the injury he
sustained and he had to go under the knife.
After making a complete
recovery, Obomate made his first appearance of the season for United in the
NPFL on Sunday, coming on as a second half substitute as the Pride of Rivers
put champions, Enugu Rangers to the sword, 1-0 in Port Harcourt .
“I felt very happy making a
return to the team. I felt very excited and believe I am the luckiest person on
earth.
“The severity of the injury
made me think at some point that it was all over for me as a professional
footballer.
“The orthopaedic surgeon had
told me before he commenced treatment that my chances of making a return to
professional football was very slim but I thank God I have made a successful
return,” Obomate told the club’s official website, www.riversunitedfc.com.ng.
Targets and aspirations for
the season
United will compete on three
fronts, the Caf Champions League, the Federation Cup and the NPFL this season
and Obomate is set to play a part in a potentially special season for the
football club.
The midfielder says success
in at least one of the competitions will be vital, especially given the huge
invested made in the team by the sponsor, the Rivers State Government.
“We are taking part in three
important competitions and it is important to win at least one of them.
“I will prefer to win the Caf
Champions League title if given the luxury of choice.
“There is a saying that, ‘To
whom much is given, much is expected’ so we must reciprocate the gesture of the
Rivers State Government and especially our number one fan, the Governor of
Rivers State, His Excellency, Ezebunwo Nyesom Wike towards the football club.
“We must also reciprocate the
support of the fans,” he said.
Searching for the golden fleece
Obomate is an intelligent footballer. He is
one of the few around who made the decision to combine academics with
professional football, ostensibly making future plans for life after
competitive sport.
Achieving this has however
not been easy as he explains.
“It is not easy to combine
academics and professional football has not been easy but then, life itself is
a challenge.
“I however made the decision
to take up this challenge irrespective of how difficult it would be to combine
both football and academics.
“I must use this medium to
thank my coaches who have been assisting me in this regard as I attempt to
juggle both.
“I am very grateful to them
because without their support, it would have been extremely difficult to
achieve this,” he said.
Dr Agi speaks on Obomate’s injury
Team doctor of United,
Chukwuemeka Agi also spoke on the situation, revealing that Obomate is lucky to
still be a professional footballer.
“Obomate Frederick complained
about pain in his leg and when we investigated and examined me, we realized it
might have been as a result of overuse.
“So we asked him to run some
investigations which he did and what it revealed was that one of the leg bones
had an incomplete fracture/break which we refer to as a stress fracture in
medical terms.
“It is something that occurs
from overuse so he was referred to an orthopaedic surgeon, Dr Bob Yellowe who
also examined him and asked for a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) test.
“With those in place, he was
able to treat him, giving both drugs and putting him on Plaster of Paris (POP)
to ensure that the leg was well-rested.
“He subsequently improved.
This injury occurred between late October and early December, 2016.
“He was on POP for close to
two months before rehabilitation commenced.
“Some players never return
from such kinds of injuries because the incomplete fracture becomes complete
because of overuse.
“However, in his (Obomate’s)
own case, it healed properly and completely.
“I must commend the sponsor
of the team, the Rivers State Government via the Sports Ministry for
consistently making the welfare of players, health inclusive, top priority by
responding to our call in this case.
“Obomate is now out of the
woods and is now able to assist the team,” Dr Agi concluded.
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