A former professional football player from Ghana, who had to give up the sport in order to provide for his family and has been playing in the Bahrain Amateur League for the past couple of years, has landed a trial with a Division Two club in Turkey.
Evans Domotiere, 30, came to the kingdom in 2014 after being offered a job as a delivery driver for a restaurant – an opportunity he couldn’t ignore, even if it meant having to give up playing the sport he loves so much, since it was a chance to help his family out financially.
Now, after nine years, during which he switched jobs because the owner of the first food outlet he worked for wouldn’t allow him time off to train for amateur games, Domotiere has been invited for a trial with Turkish Division Two club Somaspor FC in Manisa, a city in Turkey’s Aegean Region.
“I will be going to Manisa at the end of July for the trial,” Domotiere told the GDN in an exclusive interview. “All credit to my agent for making it possible: he sent some videos to Somaspor and they told him they wanted to see more.
“Their league starts in August so my try-out, which will probably last two weeks, will happen before that. As far as I understand, I will also have to take part in training sessions every morning and evening and the club will also organise friendlies after the trial.”
The youngest of seven siblings, Domotiere fell in love with football as a small boy and his passion for the game increased after seeing Brazil win the 2002 Fifa World Cup in Japan.
“I was about 10,” Domotiere remembered. “The great Ronaldo was already one of my favourite players by then but, after seeing him score those two goals against Germany in the final, I liked him even more.”
Brazil won 2-0 to seal their fifth World Cup title – still the most won by any team – and, thousands of miles away, a young boy decided that he was going to follow in his idol, Ronaldo’s footsteps and become a professional football player.
“I was – still am – mad about football,” Domotiere laughed. “I played for my high school and, when I was about 18, a Division Two club from my home town, Techiman City, invited me to join them.
“Back then, I used to play as a midfielder and stayed with Techiman City for two seasons, following which I was offered that restaurant job in Bahrain.”
Once in the kingdom, Domotiere focused on his job as much as he could. But, the desire to keep on playing football had never really left him, so when he met and befriended a group of his fellow football-loving compatriots, they formed a team and started playing friendly games against other similarly-formed sides.
“I just couldn’t go without playing football,” Domotiere chuckled. “So that team of fellow expats from Ghana was a good outlet for my passion. But I wanted to play for a proper club so, one day in 2016, I just picked up my boots and went to Budaiya club and asked if they’d give me a try-out.
“They were kind enough to let me train with them for a few days but I had to stop because my then boss wouldn’t give me time off. But the coach had been very nice – after telling me that I need an agent before I could negotiate with a club, he still allowed me to train with his team and even wanted to try me out in a friendly game.”
A few months later, Domotiere moved to another company and continued to play with the Ghana team he and his compatriots had formed.
And, three years on, his luck changed.
“I was playing in the Bahrain Expat League in 2021 and I met a chap who told me about the Bahrain Amateur League, which had just been formed and was about to begin its first season,” Domotiere explained.
“I had found myself an agent by then and this man I met was playing for the British Club in the amateur league. So my agent organised a meeting with the British Club’s coach, who appeared sufficiently impressed.
“He told me I could help the club and registered me as a player and things just took an upswing from there.”
Earlier that year, Domotiere had experienced another upswing in his fortunes when he joined Raw Candy, a popular café in Seef owned by entrepreneur Sophie Middleton and managed by her sister, Olivia.
“They are terrific,” Domotiere said. “When they found out about my passion for football, they made sure that they helped me out as much as they could by ensuring that my work timings were scheduled such so that I would have enough time for training and practice sessions.
“And when they found out about my signing by the British Club, they were very happy and encouraged me as much as they could. They’re absolutely wonderful.”
Domotiere has already had two successful seasons in the Bahrain Amateur League, being declared the British Club’s best player in the 2022-23 season and helping his team win the Bahrain Amateur Shield Cup.
“Unfortunately, we couldn’t win the other two trophies we aimed for,” Domotiere said. “But we still did pretty well in the Bahrain Amateur League and the Diogo Pirez Cup.”
Now, as he sets his sights on his upcoming try-out for Somaspor FC, Domotiere hopes to be able to land a contract with the Turkish side.
“It would be great if it did happen,” Domotiere, who switched to playing as a left-winger after seeing French star Kylian Mbappe perform wonders from that position, said.
“I’m just very fortunate to find myself in this position, where I have a chance again to make a career in the sport I love, nearly a decade on from when I thought my time in football was over.”
adnan@gdnmedia.bh