“How NFF officials ended my football career” – Crayon recounts
Crayon, the emerging Nigerian music artist widely recognized as Charles Chibuezechukwu, has revealed the distressing ordeal of how officials with questionable motives within the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) abruptly terminated his promising football career, leading him into a state of depression.
In a conversation with Cool FM, the singer of the hit track “Ijo” opened up about his early involvement in football and his subsequent journey to fame. Crayon candidly shared the significant impact this experience had on his mental well-being.
As part of the Mavin label, Crayon recounted that back in 2015, he was initially selected to represent a national youth team, only to be unfairly dismissed from the squad.
He said;
“In 2015, I fell into depression because I couldn’t gain admission into the university like my friends did. They were all having fun at school, while I was left behind in the neighborhood.
It was a boring period for me. I had nothing to do and nowhere to go. Moreover, my football career wasn’t taking off either. I used to play football and was quite good at it. They nicknamed me ‘Coutinho’ in my neighborhood, after the talented player who represented Liverpool.
I aspired to become a professional footballer, but it didn’t work out for me. Football in Nigeria is deeply affected by corruption. While I won’t mention any names to avoid hurting people, I can reveal that these were influential officials within the football community.
