Former Super Eagles of Nigeria goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama is currently without a club after leaving French club Lille on mutual consent in August 2018, but he has no intention of hanging up his boots at 36.
In an interview on Thursday with French tabloid La Voix du Nord, the former Enyimba shot-stopper is hoping to join a club nowhere else but in France to live close to his family.
“I don’t want to quit football for now. I still want to continue my career but it’s a little bit difficult. I train everyday at home. I try to maintain my form. I’ve got some contacts and interest in France, from Israel and Turkey. But at my age, I don’t feel like working far away from my family.
“My family is here in Lille. We will be staying here. We have been living here since 2011 and we like the place,” he said.
Enyeama, who was Lille’s first choice goalkeeper, fell down the pecking order following the arrival of Argentine coach Marcelo Bielsa in 2017 until his eventual departure from Les Dogues.
He blames the twist of the events on the coach.
“Everything was fine until he (Bielsa) came. Imagine, I was undergoing treatment when he arrived at the club. The first time we met I was in a hospital bed. He walked in and did not even care to greet me or ask if I was okay.
“His assistants came later to check on me. The next day nobody spoke to me and that was how it all began to spoil for me at Lille. Perhaps Bielsa didn’t like me but he never said it however his attitude towards me was terrible,” he said.
Enyeama joined Lille in 2011 from Israeli side Hapoel Tel Aviv FC. He won the Africa Cup of Nations with Nigeria in 2013.
