It's been a long road back to English football for Yakubu, via China and Qatar, but the old questions haven’t gone away. After the veter...
It's been a long road back to English football for Yakubu, via China and Qatar, but the old questions haven’t gone away.
After the veteran Nigerian striker turned back the clock to score his first goal for Reading and fire Steve Clarke’s side into the quarter-finals of the FA Cup, the age issue was inevitably raised again.
The official figure is 32 but Derby boss Steve McClaren reckoned that Yakubu told him he was 25 when he joined him at Middlesbrough in a £7.5million deal a decade ago.
In 2008, David Moyes sparked an international incident by referring to his Everton striker’s age as ‘a Nigerian 25’.
Yakubu has heard it all before. And as long as he’s doing what he does best, he is happy to let the debate continue.
‘You can see the way I play, so I am not talking about my age,’ he said. ‘It is normal. People can choose if they don’t believe it so it’s up to them. But for me I am just enjoying my football.
‘The hunger is always there. When you play in England you always have the desire to play. You cannot hide here.’
