27th January, 2011
For over 160 years Siemens Limited is recognised in Germany and all over the world for its innovation and excellence. The company formed a football team recently, and appointed Akinlabi Olusegun as Team Manager. Olusegun speaks with SUNDAY AKINTOYE about the team’s recent achievement and other issues
Sir, your team hammered Amalgamation of Nigeria female club coaches 3-0 in a friendly match played last week, what is the secret?
It was a sweet victory for us. The victory was well deserved because we trained hard for four months. I want to thank our Managing Director, Alain De Cat, who personally asked us to form a football team.
Are you planning to play grassroots football competitions very soon?
We cannot play grassroots football tournament now because we’ve just started. Most of the grassroots tournaments organised now  are not violent free. So we cannot afford to risk the life of our staff to participate in such competitions.
Why did you say grassroots soccer competitions are characterised by violence?
Because many of the clubs owners are after the prize money, which results in violence. Siemens is a company and we cannot take part in competitions that lack security and proper organisation.
What about the Lagos FA Cup, Boska Cup and Oba’s Cup that are well organised?
For now, we prefer to play corporate bodies, media outfits and other companies that have football teams.
Are you planning to engage in any friendly now?
We want to play the Guardian Newspapers, but we have not finalised a date for the novelty match. We are waiting for any media outfits including P.M. NEWS to come and play with us.
Did you play football as a youth?
When I was in school, I played football for the defunct Shodubi High School, Abeokuta. As a student of the Ogun State Polytechnic, I was selected as a member  of the school football team for the NIPOGA Games before I left for higher institution.
Where do you see Siemens’s football team in the future?
I see a lot of football stars emerging from the team and playing for professional clubs in Nigeria and abroad. I also see the players playing for the junior national teams.
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