UGANDA@50: Musisi ranks among Uganda’s best ever

Kampala

The debate as to who should be regarded as Uganda’s best footballer of all time or in the last 50 years indeed is a tough one. Is it Magid Musisi, Jirmmy Kirunda, Philip Omondi, Ali Kitonsa, Jimmy “omulogo” or Kabega “owennyanda”? (the hard shooter). Such arguments will ever rage on and could be compared to the one on the international scene which has never fully ruled out who among Pele, Diego Maradona, Johan Cruyff, Franz Beckenbauer or Alfredo Di Stefano was the undisputed king of football.

In the case of Uganda, many will agree that in Magid Musisi, the country boasted of a prolific striker who emerged national super league top scorer on four occasions; 1988 (28 goals), 1989 (15), 1990 (28) and 1992 (28).

The former SC Villa striker made history in 1991 by becoming the first player ever to score a century of league goals (100 or more) an achievement that eluded other prominent strikers like Polly Ouma, Chris Ddungu, Davis Kamoga, Issa Ssekatawa, Frank Kyazze or even Andrew Mukasa Fimbo.

Although being a league top scorer is one thing and being the finest striker is another, many will agree that Magid Musisi’s goals couldn’t be compared to those of stylist Philip Omondi - just like Gerd Muller’s couldn’t be compared to Maradona’s. The former Villa star was indeed a rare goal grabber. He was swift, good in the air, on the ground and very dangerous in front of the goal.

No one can debate Musisi’s supremacy without comparing him to those before him. Chris Ddungu, for instance, with KCC emerged the league top scorer in 1975. He was not good in the air and neither was he swift but compensated all this with a knack of beating goalkeepers when well positioned in the box. On the other hand, no one could beat Express FC’s Ali Kitonsa when it came to speed and good finishing.

In the 1964 season, Kitonsa is reported to have scored 102 goals in all competitions and friendly matches including four past Egypt in the 5-1 drabbing of the North Africans that took Uganda to the All African games in Congo Brazaville. Little wonder that he was nicknamed “Simba ya Uganda” (the lion of Uganda) in Kenya and Tanzania and later went on to become the first Ugandan to play professional football when Zamalek of Egypt signed him with teammate Abdu Kiggundu.

Then there were the likes of Godfrey Kisitu and Philip Omondi who were midfielder cum strikers who proved real thorns in most teams’ defence lines. And who will ever forget lethal left wingers of the calibre of Dennis Obua (Police) or Godfrey Kateregga (KCC) whose easy scoring ability mesmerised most goalkeepers in Uganda and rest of Africa?

Gaster Nsubuga, a keen footballer follower and resident of Nansana, believes that Magid Musisi left a remarkable mark on the Ugandan football scene for having achieved a lot within a short time.

At the age of 16, Musisi was signed on by first division Pepsi FC, forcing the youngster to abandon studies at Bashir Secondary School in Wandegeya. In 1985, he captured the eye of SC Villa’s tactician David Otti who invited him to join the premier club. He scored twice in his first league game for SC Villa against Maroons. In 1987, Musisi, then aged 20, played his first match for the national team against Mozambique and scored goal.

The same year Musisi was voted Uganda’s footballer of the year. In all, he won six league titles with SC Villa. About Musisi’s career goals, Edward Ssonko, a trader on Luwuum street says he will never forget the equalising goal away in Ibadan against Iwuanyawu Nationale of Nigeria in the semifinals of the 1991 Africa Cup of Champions Clubs (now Champions league).

He skillfully beat the entire Nigerian defence to head in a powerful goal and single handedly pushed SC Villa into the finals against Club Africain of Tunisia,” he recalls. According to Ssonko, football fans didn’t have to support SC Villa in order to admire this wonder boy.
Professional football

The last time I met a Ugandan former diplomat and friend, Musoke Nteyafas, he narrated the way Magid Musisi went to Europe for professional football. The whole story starts in 1992. Nteyafas then a first private secretary to the president on diplomatic affairs and who formerly served in Russia, Cuba, France and Denmark, had just developed a special interest in football and was actually in deep love with SC Villa.

Nakivubo stadium had just hosted a Coca Cola sponsored international football clinic conducted by the popular French-born coach Claude Le Roy, then coach for DR Congo.To bid the Frenchman farewell, the French embassy in Kampala organised a cocktail party and among those invited was Musoke Nteyafas. At the party, Nteyafas had an opportunity of talking to Re Loy whom he told about Musisi’s football skills and the need to connect him to a French club. Luckily, Le Roy had himself just seen the player in a league action at Nakivubo where he discovered his potential.

He promised to get in touch with Nteyafas in the “near future”. Hearing this, Nteyafas lost hope and thought that was the end of it all. To his surprise however “near future” turned out to be a fortnight. Le Roy called requesting Nteyafas to prepare Musisi for an urgent trip to France and sent two air tickets for the player and Nteyafas.

Nteyafas however requested Le Roy to send a third air ticket for SC Villa chairman Patrick Kawooya, saying it wouldn’t be fair for him to miss the trip. The Frenchman agreed. However when informed about the trip, Kawooya turned it down, saying he had all along been preparing Musisi to join Nottingham Forest in England and an adamant Kawooya told Nteyafas to immediately disappear from his office.

Musisi had been informed of the move and begged Kawooya to let him go to France, arguing that he was tired of waiting for the Nottingham Forest deal which had not materialised in two years. Kawooya changed his mind and immediately summoned Nteyafas.

Nteyafas travelled to France a week earlier to prepare for Musisi and Kawooya’s arrival. The two met with Nteyafas and a delegation from second division side Stade Rennes at Paris’ Charles De Gaulle international airport. From Paris the club officials insisted that the visitors make it to Rennes (about 300km away) by road instead of flying.

To make things look impossible for Musisi, he was told he had to make it straight to the club’s training grounds for trials. After hours on the road, Musisi, Kawooya and Nteyafas finally reached Rennes. Musisi was dead tired and hungry. They found Rennes players in training but Musisi refused to take to the pitch, saying he was too tired , and besides, he needed something to eat.

The Club officials agreed to take him to the nearest hotel for a shower and a meal, returning after about 30 minutes to embark on the long awaited trials.To everyone’s surprise, the Ugandan scored a magnificent goal on his first touch of the ball.

The next day he scored again during Rennes friendly match against a first division club. He instantly became the talk of town. Because word had gone around about his presence, for the next two days more and more fans flocked the club’s training grounds to take a glance at the skillful footballer from an unknown African country.

Several days went by with Musisi performing wonders but to the player and Kawooya’s anger, Rennes remained tight-lipped about the decision to sign him. As a result, Kawooya came up with a trick. He summoned journalists from local newspapers and disclosed that he was taking back his player to Uganda the following day.

The following morning all newspapers splashed it on their sports pages- that the skillful striker under trials at Rennes was going back to Africa. This shocked the Rennes club officials who moved quickly and immediately sent for Kawooya and Musisi from their hotel. All they wanted was Musisi’s signature. And the contract details suddenly turned Kawooya’s face from anger to smiles. For both Musisi and his previous club, SC Villa stood to gain from the contract.

That morning, Musisi officially became a Rennes player. He was entitled to among others, a well furnished house, a decent salary and a car. The following day Patrick Kawooya left for Entebbe a happy man. It later emerged that Stade Rennes signed Musisi for $180,000. From this amount SC Villa bought the Club house in Makindye.

In 1997 after leaving Stade Rennes, Magid Musisi joined Turkish club Bursaspor and later Dardanelspor where he ended professional football in 2001. Born September 15, 1967 to Siraje Katende and Deborah Namutebi, none of Musisi’s kids numbering over 10 has taken on serious football. Magid Musisi succumbed to cancer in December 2005.

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