Sziasztok, Jánó vagyok. Közép-Európa első világra szóló podcast csatornáját hallgatjátok Magyarországról. Ez a Budapest.fm. Hi, my name is Ray, and you're listening to the number one podcast station in Central Europe, Budapest.fm, podcasting to the world from Hungary. Hello, hello, hello. Sziasztok, mindenkinek. Welcome back, üdvözlünk. I'm here today with two very special guests, my dear friend Amma Wakili, Wakili Amma, the Apple Man, and Edwin Garibovics, a.k.a. you might know him as Busting Loads on Girls from Instagram, a man of many different monikers. We won't list them all now. How are you folks doing? Doing great, thanks. And so, we're here today. We're gathered here today to discuss various things, what's going on in the world, what's going on in our lives, and to hear a little bit more about both of your stories, because you both have very interesting stories. All right. So interesting, in fact, that we're being filmed from many different angles by a film crew, by Ray, by who knows who else is peering through the windows. But let's start with you, Amma. Eddie's been on the program before. Where are you from? I'm from Nigeria, a country in West Africa. It's a very popular country, so I'm sure most of you already know Nigeria. I'm from Taraba State in Nigeria. Long way from Nigeria here in Budapest, huh? Yep. It's been quite a journey for me. Quite a journey. And what's the name of your town in Nigeria? I'm from Jalingo in Taraba State. Uh-huh. Yeah. Cool. And what about you, Eddie? Where are you from? I was born in Pula, Croatia. So we got a Croatian, a Horvát. Eddie the Horvát, another moniker. And we got a Nigerian, a Nigeriani Ferfi. Now, Alma, you said you're from Nigeria, from Taraba State. Where is Taraba State? Where is that? What part of Nigeria? Taraba State is located in the northeastern part of the country. It's not so heavily populated like Lagos or Abuja. It's quite like—Jalingo is quite a small town. So I was born in Zing. That's— Zing. Oh yeah, dude. Every time we pass by Zing Burger, he's like— They got a whole burger chain dedicated to you here. Yeah, I took a picture of it and posted it. My friends and family, they're all like, Oh wow, that's really cool. So Zing is like a smaller town than Jalingo, actually. So I was born there, and then we later moved to Jalingo, and then that's where I basically grew up. And what's your profession? What do you do for a living? I'm a pro soccer player. You're a pro focista, as they say in Hungary. Oh, all right. Focista. All right, you're a pro soccer player. What does that mean? You play professional soccer, I guess, but like where has that journey taken you? I know you've played in some different places in Europe. Yeah, yeah. Well, I started my professional career in Belgium. But it all started for me way back in Nigeria, actually. So most people get surprised when I tell them that I was actually scouted to leave Nigeria by Aspire Academy in Qatar. Aspire Academy in Qatar. Yes, like the country that's having the World Cup next year. Yeah, exactly. Q-U... no, Q-A. Q-A. It's only Qatar or Qatar? Some people say Qatar, some people say Qatar. I mean, I would take it from the person that lived there, but... Yeah, it's Qatar. It's not Qatar. Yeah, it's Qatar. Qatar. Yeah, yeah. So you went to this Aspire Academy. Yeah. From Jiglingo in Taraba State in Nigeria. Yeah. And this Aspire Academy, like what was it? What was Aspire Academy? Well, well, so Aspire Academy had this project called Aspire Football Dreams. So this is a project where they go around, it's like a talent hunt, you know, for soccer players. So back in 2009, they were doing an edition of the Aspire Football Dreams. So what they do is they send scouts over to, like, different African countries, so... In Nigeria, for example, they send scouts to all the different states in Nigeria. How many states are there? There are 36. 36? Is that right, Eddie? 36 in Nigeria? Yeah, it's 36. Okay, cool. Just checking. He knows that? Yeah. The guy knows everything. Eddie, one of his other names is Eddie the Encyclopedia. Yeah, yeah. So they send scouts to different parts of the country, and then they organize, like, little matches to see different players. And how many people were scouted? Like, you said there are scouts all over the country. So in your state, there was, like, a group of players that were scouted in your state? Yeah, yeah. In my state, there were only two of us that were scouted. Out of how many? Out of, like, 300 players that came out that day. Wow. Yeah, yeah. So two out of 300, and you were one of them that got scouted by this Aspire Academy. And then what happened after that? You went to Qatar? No, no, you don't go to Qatar directly. So what happens is they go to, like, every state, and then they pick, like, in my state, for example, they picked two of us. So maybe, for example, in a nearby state, Adamawa State, for example, that's another state next to mine, they may pick one player or three, depending on how many they see. So out of the 36 states in Nigeria, there was, like, several different tryouts, maybe 300 in your place and 500 in the other place and like 1,000 in Abuja, and then out of all that, how many made it to the next round? Yeah, 50. 50 make it to the next round. So the 50 best Nigerians basically make it to the next round. So the 50 make it to Lagos, where we're gonna have, like, a one-week tryout. So this time, we have, like, other scouts coming, like more qualified scouts. They come in, and then they have, like, a one-week camp. So the one-week camp, we have, like, running tests, you know, like speed, endurance, jumping, just different aspects of football. So after that week, we're about 50 of us, so they select only three. Three out of 50? Yeah, three out of 50. And you were one. Yeah, I was one of them. So you were one out of 200, and then one of three out of 50. Exactly. And then you made the academy. Yeah, and then I went to Qatar, but it's not over yet, you know. It's not over. Yeah. It's not over already. It's not over till the fat lady sings. Yep, yep, yeah. So I went to Qatar, and then... In Qatar, we were about 40 of us. Well, one thing you need to know is, you know, they were doing this process in Nigeria and also, like, in Côte d'Ivoire, in Senegal, in Kenya, and South Africa, Rwanda, yeah, so other countries. So these guys went out to find, like, diamonds in the rough all over Africa. Exactly. And 40 of you from the whole continent made it to Qatar. To Qatar, yeah, yeah. So 40 of us were in Qatar for, like, a month. So we played matches against, like, I think it was Barcelona, the youth teams, of course, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Stuttgart, I think. So the best of the best in the world, basically. Yeah, exactly, yeah. And how old are you, by the way? I'm 25. No, no, no, no, no, back then. Back then I was 14. So it's like 11 years ago this is happening. Yeah, exactly. Cool. This was back in 2010. 2010. Yeah. Seems like a lifetime ago. I mean, I guess it kind of was, but... Yeah, yeah. 2010. Yeah, definitely. So you were in Qatar versus the best of the best in all of Africa. Yep. 40 people playing against Stuttgart, playing against Bayern Munich, playing against Barcelona. Yeah. And mind you, out of that 40, they only wanted to keep 18 of us. So it was, like, a really, you know, huge competition, you know. I remember going to Aspire, like, when I first saw—like, you can Google it—like, when I first saw Aspire Academy, I was like, There's no way I'm gonna leave this place without a contract. I mean, it was amazing. The pitches were amazing. I'd never played on, like, really good pitches, really good equipment. You know, everything was just new and really nice to me, you know. And ever since I was a little kid, all I ever wanted to be was a pro footballer playing in Europe, and this was, like, a golden opportunity for me, and I wasn't gonna miss it. So we had the trial for one month, and then they later told us, Okay, everyone has to go back home, and then they're gonna give us a call to come back. So we were all just— You know, I went home, I wasn't really sure how things were gonna go down, you know, because I... But I, the thing is, I was confident because I, during the matches, I knew I played well, and I also knew that there was like a first team and a second team. They kind of divided us into two. So I was pretty much confident, but I wasn't totally sure that I was gonna go back. So about two weeks later, I got a call from the academy that I'd made it and I was gonna go back. I was just going crazy. Take us to that. By the way, if you got any questions for Ama, feel free to ask. You know, this is a quite remarkable story. I mean, we've been living together for like a month, so... Oh, you guys live together now? Yeah. I mean, I know that because I set you two up like a little matchmaker, but we'll get to that part of the story in just a bit. But so you made this Aspire Academy back in 2010, basically one of the best 18-, 14-year-olds in all of Africa. Yeah. And that must have been like a remarkable feeling. How did your family react? Oh, I mean, they were over the moon, of course. You know, everyone was so happy for me, because all they knew that like Ama just wants to be a pro footballer. That's all I ever wanted to be. And you know where I'm from, if you really tell people that you just want to be a professional soccer player, they see like, okay, you know, it's... Like it's unrealistic. Yeah, it's unrealistic. Yeah, it's not gonna happen. Like, we know you're good, but how are you gonna get the opportunity? Yeah. Yeah, you know, so they were really happy, and I was so happy that I was able to like prove a lot of people wrong also. Prove the haters wrong. Yeah, yeah, because I remember lots of people like, You take this football so seriously. Like, where's it gonna take you? You know, so, but I've been around, so... Nice. Yeah, so you made it to Aspire Academy as a 14-year-old, and how long did you spend in Qatar? I was there for four and a half years. Four and a half years. So until about the time you're 18, and what happens then? You get sent off to another place? Yeah. So Aspire Academy had this partnership with a club called KAS Eupen in Belgium. KAS Eupen. Yeah. Trust me on that. What language is this? It's German, I think. Kassel? Kassel? Kassel. Yeah, you know, it's in Belgium, but it's a town. It's really close to Germany, so it's like, it has like a German background. Yeah, exactly. So you made it over to Kassel Open? Yeah, so I had to go for tryouts, actually, in Kassel Open again. So I think there were 11 of us from, because our category were 18, like I told you, and then so 11 of us went to Kassel Open for tryouts, and then the coach only picked six of us. He was only interested in six of us. Wow. So you've been defying odds for quite a while. Yeah, yeah, and that's one thing my dad always reminds me. He's like, you've been through a lot. You've been, like, overcoming a lot of challenges in your life, so there's nothing I think that you cannot overcome. It's just a matter of time, and you just have to keep pushing. Exactly. Sounds like a cool guy. What does your dad do for a living? My dad is a pastor. He's a pastor? Yeah, yeah. Okay, cool. But he's a really huge football fan. Uh-huh. Yeah. What would your dad think of me? Would he like me? I've got six tattoos on my knee. And he's the pastor in the Satanic church. Yeah. So Kassel Open, you make it over there, Belgium, and how long did you stay in Belgium for? I was in Belgium for a year and a half. A year and a half. And then I had to leave because my contract was over after a year and a half. And then I went over to Lithuania, to FK Trakai. So it was a Nigerian kid from the dusty state of Taraba. Yep. You make it to Qatar, and then to Belgium, and then to Lithuania. Yeah. This is already becoming quite an adventure still. Yeah. It's a wild ride. It's a wild ride. And then what, after Lithuania, Ukraine? No, after Lithuania, then I went to Macedonia. Okay. And then to... What was Macedonia like? Well, the thing is, my transfer from... Lithuania for FK Trakai to Macedonia was a bit rocky, you know, with agents and stuff, so it wasn't really smooth. So even while I was there, things didn't really go as expected, you know, because the agent I was with wasn't really the best, I should say. So, yeah, so it was pretty much rocky. But how'd you like the country? They speak my language there. Yeah, yeah, I know, I know. The country is pretty nice. I mean, it has, like, you know, the Balkans have, like, beautiful views and stuff, yeah, so it's really nice. But I was really more interested in the football aspect, and it didn't really go too well. So, yeah, so I don't really have, like, nice things to say about it, nice memories of it. Where do you have the nicest memories besides, obviously, Budapest? Yeah, like, yeah, of course I like Budapest. I liked Belgium a lot. Yeah, because even when I left from Qatar to Belgium, I already had other Aspire players that were in Belgium, so it's easy for me to just adapt and stay there because I had people I knew in the... And by the way, what level are you playing at this whole time? Is it, like, the top divisions of these countries? In Belgium, I played second division, but Eupen right now play in the Premier League. In the Jupiler League, or whatever they call it. Jupiler Pro League. Oh, wow. Yeah. So, but back then it was called the Proximus League, so that was the second division. But in Lithuania, I played in their Premier League, and we did pretty good actually because we played in the Europa League. Europa League. Yeah, Europa League qualifiers. So that's like the level below Champions League. Yeah, exactly. That's, I mean, yeah, that's like one of the best competitions in all of Europe. Yeah, played some really important matches, and it was really good. And that's how I got to make the transfer to Macedonia, but it's just unfortunate that... It didn't really go as smooth as I wanted it to go. Yeah, yeah. But what happened after Macedonia? Where did you go next? So, yeah, I went to Albania for a little bit, and then after I just went home. Back to Nigeria? Yeah, back to Nigeria. Did you have to go there, like, often? Yeah, ever since I was in Qatar, like when I was in Qatar, I used to go home twice a year. And after I signed pro, I used to go back home once a year. So I went back home, and then I was without a club for a while, a few months, and then an agent from Ukraine just randomly messaged me, and he was like, I watched your videos on Wyscout, and I see that you're a good player. What's Wyscout? That's what agents use to... So it's like a database? Yeah, database. Scout players, yeah. From you and Lithuania and Macedonia and Albania and Belgium clubs. Exactly. And he's like, okay, let's bring this guy over to Ukraine. Exactly, yeah. So he messaged me on Facebook, and he asked for my number, so I gave him my number, and we had a quick conversation, and he was like, How am I doing? Do I want to come to Ukraine? So I told him I've never been to Ukraine before, but I know of, you know, Shakhtar and Dynamo Kiev, the big teams. Shakhtar Donetsk. Yeah, Shakhtar Donetsk, yeah. So he was like, Yeah, I can organize a tryout for you, and you can come, and we'll take it from there. So he sent me an invitation, and that's how I went to Ukraine. So when I went to Ukraine, I made the tryouts, and I had to go back to Nigeria because the visa I initially went to Ukraine with was a visiting visa, so you couldn't really sign a contract with that. So I went back to Nigeria, and then... 2020, in January, I went back to Ukraine. And then you know what happened next? COVID. COVID. Yeah, yeah. Bad timing. Yeah, it was really bad timing. And right when we were about to start, COVID hit, and then everything shut down, of course. And I had just a three-month visa, which got expired. So then I had to, after, like, the lockdown ended, I had to go back to Nigeria. And the thing about Nigeria is that things are not really straightforward. You know, I had to go back to Nigeria to get a new visa so that I could come back to Ukraine. But, like here in Europe, if you want to get a visa and go somewhere, it's pretty straightforward. You know, you go to the embassy and they tell you what to do, and you get your visa, right? But in Nigeria, it's just, it's chaos, bro. Yeah, yeah, it's total chaos. So I took longer than expected to get the visa. But then I eventually got the visa, and then I went back to Ukraine in 2021. And right when we were about to start the season, the war. Yeah, but that would be 2022 is when the war started. Yeah, yeah. So, yeah, I was— sorry, I was at home pretty much throughout 2020, like six months in 2021. Uh-huh, I see. Yeah, yeah. So you get back to Ukraine, you're in a club. Where is this club? What part of Ukraine? It was in Kyiv. In Kyiv. In the capital. Exactly. And so you're just about to hit the ground, COVID's over, getting ready to hit the ground running, and then the war comes in. The war comes in. So that's, I think, you know, something that everyone can relate to right now. Or not relate to, but at least that's something that's very visceral. Okay, the war starts. Uh-huh. Everyone else around the world is sort of panicking. What's going on? Are they going to drop bombs? Are they going to drop nukes? This is crazy. Yeah. But you're literally in Kyiv. And were you in Kyiv when the war broke out? Luckily, no, I wasn't in Kyiv. We left Kyiv three days before. I think, yeah, three or four days before the war broke out, we went to the western region. I think Zakarpattia region, that's the name of the region. The Hungarians call it Kapatalya. Okay, all right. But it's because there's actually a lot of Hungarians. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. It's historically been, in the past, part of the Hungarian kingdom. And anyway, it has a very mixed Hungarian-Ukrainian heritage. So you're there in the west, where it's relatively safe. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Not where it's completely safe in Ukraine, but that part of the country is safer. And how long are you there for? I think the war broke out February 22nd, so you must have gone over like February 19th or so. Yeah, about that. And then you're there for how long? We were there for, I think, two weeks. Yeah. And what's going on in your head right now? You must, I mean, for me, I mean, being next to Ukraine, it was kind of crazy enough. But being inside the country must have been a wild... Yeah, it was crazy because they were just shooting missiles from planes. I'm like— and then they kept saying that, Oh, we're safe over here. I'm like, but what if they just decide, okay, we're gonna leave Kyiv and come to the west and just drop a missile? You know, you never know. So I was really panicking. And then I saw some of my teammates, you know, just crying, calling, like, their parents. And your teammates, where are they from? They're mostly Ukrainian. We were two foreigners in the team. Oh wow. So it's mostly Ukrainian. Yeah, mostly Ukrainian. So they all had to stay, like most of them? Yeah, they all had to stay, yeah. Except, I think one— he was 17, so... Oh, he... Oh yeah, didn't you say it was his birthday? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. So he had to leave, like, really, really, really, like, quick. Because, of course, in Ukraine right now, if you're between the ages of like 18 and I think 65, you have to stay in the country. Yeah, yeah, definitely. So you want some water? Yeah. So you're in the western part of Ukraine for a week or two. The war is breaking out. It's like probably feels to you like it's like end-of-times shit going on, right? Yeah, exactly. And what happens next? What do you do? And, you know, you just kept feeling like... You know, things just kept happening that I couldn't control, you know, like with COVID, and then trying to get, like, my career back on track, and then the war. I was just like, like, what's really happening, you know? Yeah, exactly. I was like, you know, what's happening? And my agent was just telling me that probably now that the war, you know, it's ongoing, so the president of the club is just gonna, you know, just break everyone's contract, and you just have to find your way, you know, go to Romania or go back to Nigeria or just choose anywhere you want to go, but just leave Ukraine. So I decided that I was gonna come to Hungary because I have a friend here who plays for Fehérvár. Yeah, Funsho. Funsho, he plays football in Hungary? Yeah, he plays for Fehérvár. Fehérvár, Vidi. Vidi FC. Say ‘Fehérvár.’ Can you say ‘Sékesfehérvár’? Sékesfehérvár. Oh, there you go. Sékesfehérvár. Okay, okay, okay. Not like Alma, but, you know, pretty good also. So your buddy Funsho, he's a Nigerian guy? Yes, he's a Nigerian guy. He went to Aspire Academy also, by the way. So he also was one of the people selected to play in Qatar. Yes. And you met him there, and now he plays pro football at Vidi in Hungary, which is actually historically one of the best teams in the country. Yeah, definitely. So that's why you thought, okay, let's go to Hungary versus Poland or Romania or Slovakia. Exactly. Okay. And still, I wasn't really sure how things were gonna happen, so I just, you know, I believe in God, and I just pray that, you know, God just make me—let me just meet the right people, and I hope everything will go well. And He delivered. Yep. Well, just from—this is where I kind of come into the story because I'm, you know, going out to the border at, wow, it's been—it's Beregsurány. Beregsurány, yeah, yeah. Because Alexa and I, we rented a car, and we started asking for donations, and then I wake up the next day with like $6,000 in my Venmo account, which soon grew to over $30,000 in a week. It was crazy. It was like, I've never seen anything like that in my life. So, but this is right at the beginning, and we go to Beregsurány, and we don't know really how to help yet. We don't know how to spend the money, but we're like, let's just rent the car and see what happens. So we get there— And that was your first day? That was our first trip, yeah. We get there, and we're waiting for a while because it was chaos there. I mean, the people were— People are trying the hardest. They call them the red coats, and they're at the border. They're filtering people through. There's a whole room with, like, tons of refugees sprawled out on mattresses. And then they basically ask you, as a volunteer, to supply your details. And you say, like, where you're going and how many people you can fit in your car on, like, a little slip of paper. I mean, nothing's computerized. It's just kind of chaos. And then they have other slips of paper from the refugees. Oh, family of three going to Budapest. Let's match them up. But that happens about, like, six different times, and we're just waiting there for, like, three hours. One slip of paper: Oh, sorry, we lost the family. They already left. Another slip of paper: Oh, sorry, we lost the family. They already left. So we're like, okay, you know, we gotta wait. You know, we're here to help, but it's getting, like, a little ridiculous. Finally, they find a group of nine, I think, and we had two other guys that had cars going back to Budapest. And so they said, Let's put three people in this car, three people in this car, and two people in this car. Yeah, maybe it was originally a group of eight. So we're waiting, they're trying to get their stuff together, they have their whole lives on their back, and then all of a sudden I see this guy who, to be honest with you, he doesn't really look Ukrainian to me. So—was he the only, like, black guy? I think I was. I was the only black guy. Yeah, I mean, you know, it's, it's— I didn't see any other black person, man. It was kind of like, What's this guy doing here? So I went over to him, I'm like, Do you need help speaking English with anyone, or rather speaking Hungarian? And so he's just like, Yo, what's up? And he's dressed in football gear. Like, I knew right away this guy plays football, this guy plays soccer. I mean, I've played my whole life, and you can just identify those types of people. And so he's like, Yeah, sure. So I bring him over to the tent, thinking that he needs to get registered, and then we would just part ways and I helped him out or whatever. But then at the tent they're like, Oh no, he's all right. If you want to take him, just take him. So he gets into the car with us, with two other— Yeah, the lady and her son. The lady and her son. I can't remember his name. Oh yeah, we got him the race car, the toy car. Yeah, he was so happy. I remember. That was great. And we're caravanning back to Budapest. We drop the family off at the train station, and you tell me, I'm going to Székesfehérvár, right? Yeah, yeah. And that was to meet Funsho? Yeah, exactly. So that was the plan. And it was like one in the morning, so I'm like, look it up, I think there was one train actually, but I'm like, You know what? Just come back to Leányfalu, rest for a day, and then we can take you out to Funsho to Székesfehérvár. And so you do that, but then you liked Leányfalu quite a bit, right? It was pretty nice. Yeah, it was pretty nice. Yeah, it was really good. So you ended up staying an extra day. Lex is making some nice breakfast, all this stuff. It was really good. Eddie, this is when you come into the picture, because we were gonna go to Székesfehérvár, but first we found some agent that said he was gonna help you try to find a club in Budapest. Yeah, yeah. And he was in Hatvan, I think, which is in the complete other direction from Székesfehérvár. What is Hatvan, like 60? Exactly 60 kilometers from Budapest. It's like the most obvious name ever, Hatvan. It literally, it's like an English town being called Sixty. So then we say to you, Eddie, because you were bored that day or something, bumming around the park. Yeah, I was, like, skateboarding, skating around Margaret Island. And we said, why don't you come along with us? And so then myself, Alma, and you drive out to Hatvan to meet this agent in like a small little cafe in the middle of this small Hungarian town. And then we drive to Székesfehérvár to drop Alma off at famous Funcho's house. Right, and we got to meet Famous Funcho. What were your first impressions when you saw Alma, or when you met him? I was like, this guy's cool. We can hang out. He seemed genuine and nice. What were your first impressions when you met Eddie? No, he looked cool. I mean, he was skateboarding and he had his pink hoodie on. I was like, what's with the pink hoodie? Pink's not cool in Nigeria? No. Usually, I mean, a guy in a pink hoodie? Sus. So we're like the Bad News Bears heading out to Hatvan. We meet up with this agent. He says he's going to get you a trial somewhere. We drive down to Székesfehérvár, drop you off, and then what happened after that? I was at Funcho's place for a while, and then you gave me a call that— Oh, that Zoltan called you the agent. Zoltan's the agent, right, right, right. And he gave you a call that, um, I could—he got a trial for me at Újpest. Újpest, yeah, exactly. That's one of the biggest teams in Hungary, actually. Yeah, the purple. But the tryout, it was—they didn't really ever give you, like, a proper tryout. Yeah, exactly, because I was just having a few training sessions with the team B, and then that was basically it. Yeah, yeah. Because right now, for everyone who's listening and who's going to listen in the future, I have a feeling that this is going to be a very watched episode of this podcast. And our goal right now is to get Alma a team. And so it's very difficult because it's the end of the season. So if you're just thinking from, like, the perspective of a club, like, they're not going to sign a new player when there's only four games left in the season. Exactly. So Újpest was the first opportunity, and they kind of gave him, like, a half-hearted chance. It was nice enough that they took him for a few training sessions, but it wasn't really the type of proper tryout that we'd hope to get in the summer. Exactly. Because that's the ordinarily the time—I don't know if you know—but with football clubs— Yeah, he was telling me. Yeah, like June is around the time. Yeah. June, July is usually summer or winter, you know? It's like, um...
The December period, December, January, that's when teams look for players, and also June, July. June, July, next month. Yeah, exactly. So, but February, end of February, March, when you got here, is probably the single worst time that you could look for a club. Yeah, yeah, exactly. Because, you know, as remarkable as your story is, these clubs aren't charities, and they're not really, like, looking just to take you on because you have an interesting story. Yeah, yeah, exactly. They want someone that can help them. And as much as you might be able to help a club in the summer when their eyes might light up, wow, here's a guy that just fell into our lap that is remarkably talented, in the spring they're worried about, you know, winning games and all this stuff, and the actual mechanism to sign players isn't that easy in the spring as well. Yeah, yeah, definitely. But that being said, that brings you and Eddie back together again, because when you said you were coming back for this trial at Újpest— Yeah. —it wouldn't make any sense for you to live in Leányfalu, where we live, because the public transport's awful and it just would be impossible to get to training. So that's when Eddie, you were kind enough to offer your beautiful duplex apartment to— Yeah. I mean, me and my lady broke up and she moved out, so now I'm left with this huge apartment by myself. Sorry for laughing. Luxury penthouse. Thanks, thanks. But yeah, I'm like, I don't need this much space, and I was feeling, like, a bit down, and I was like, man, I want to help people. So you're doing this work with Ukrainian people, and I was like, man, let me know how I can help. And you were like, well, guess what? You could help Alma. Yeah. So yeah, that's really kind of him, and we're having a good time, having a good time, so. I try not to be too much of a bad influence on him. Every time he leaves, like, he goes to... ... [unclear]. To hang out with Kunjo and stuff. And every time he leaves, I go off the rails. I'm trying to be, like, better and sober and stuff, and I do it all week perfect until he leaves. So I told him I wasn't gonna leave. He's like, Why are you not gonna leave? I'm like, Bro, you know why. So you basically replaced your wife of 11 years with Alma. Yeah, pretty much. Yeah, kind of. That's nice. Not in every way, but yeah. Yeah, set the record straight. Yeah, yeah, exactly, exactly, yeah. Popping open another... beverage there. Yeah, buddy. So how long you guys been living together now? It's been like a month. A month only? More than a month. Seems like a year, bro. Yeah, I feel like we've known each other for a while. Yeah, exactly. And what do you guys do? Like, you just hang around the house? Different things, like go to the gym. Yeah, we work out. I went running with him the other day. Is he fast? He's so fast, bro. And, like, I could barely do one lap, and I'm still sore. That was like three days ago. And he does like two laps without stopping. And you were born in Croatia, and from conversations that we've had in the past, I know that you as a child were also a war refugee, no? Yeah, my parents brought me and my sisters to America during the conflict in Bosnia and, like, Yugoslavia. It was actually, like, right afterward, but they were, like, trying to sneak their way. Like, let's just say, my dad said we're all Bosnian from Bosnia because there was still stuff going on there. And that later turned out to be bad because then they couldn't decide, like, are we gonna apply as, like, from a Croatian person or a Bosnian person? So then they never applied for anything. All right. And we were just left with, like, no status. We were just, like, resident aliens and didn't really have any, like, legal status to be in America. Yeah, well, actually, I did my undergraduate dissertation or thesis, whatever they call it, about the Yugoslav conflict, so I know about how complex and crazy identity is there. Do you see any similarities between the Ukraine war and the Bosnian war? Yeah, I mean, it's like they're pretty much like brothers and brothers, cousins, and like people who have a long history together killing each other. So it's very similar to the Yugoslavia conflict. Yeah, and so then you had this illegal or legal, illegal resident status for a while in America. That's where you grew up, basically. Yeah, I grew up there from like six to 24. We actually discussed this on a previous podcast with Eddie, some of the stories about you living in Arizona, six to 24. And then why did you have to come, or why did you have to move to Budapest, or why did you move to Budapest? Well, I had to leave America because I kept getting arrested for like petty things. Some of the stories are funny, man. I got away with it so many times, and then after like the 50th time going to jail, they're like, Oh my God, you have this long rap sheet. You're not even a legal resident, like immigration jail right now. And then, I mean, I could have stayed and fought my case, but it would have took a long time, and I just wanted to get out of there, so I went back to Croatia. With your ex-wife. Yeah. I mean, like when you look at him now, it's hard to believe that he went through all that stuff, you know. It's just hard to imagine. Do you feel a sense of comfort being with someone who's also been through a pretty... Yeah, I mean, like we've been having like a lot of conversations, and sometimes like when he tells me his story and his struggle, and I see how he's doing now, like he's much better than he was back then. Except when you go to Szekesfehervar. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. It gives me like a perspective that, you know, things will get better. Things can work out. Yeah, exactly. It's these kinds of like struggles and hardships that force you to become a better person, which then makes your life better in the end. Yep. Amen. Amen. Hey, cheers for that. Cheers to that. I just finished my beer. Oh, come on. Too late. You can't cheers with orange juice. This guy loves orange juice. He gets so mad when I drink it. We gotta keep all my healthy for the tryouts. No beer. So that's pretty crazy that we have someone who was a war refugee back as a child, someone who's a war refugee now. And I guess it's interesting because people don't really think of, I think, either of you as refugees, and that's one of the themes that's really been hammered home to me the most through this whole Ukraine experience and working with some of the refugees and helping people out, is that a refugee, oftentimes in the West, I think we think of it as someone who's, like, super poor or disadvantaged, or they're, like, maybe even, like, if your image of a refugee, you think, like, dirty, dusty clothes. Exactly. There certainly is that. I mean, there are plenty of people that are in really desperate, desperate, desperate circumstances. But a war, a conflict like this, it affects everyone. It affects everyone from all aspects of life, no matter how much money you have, no matter how lucky you may have been in your life, or you're just, you know, a normal person that's neither lucky or unlucky. You're just living your life, and you are immediately affected by the catastrophe of warfare. Exactly. So it's really interesting just how many repercussions there are to the story of a war, including Ukrainians, including people that were living in Ukraine that are potentially Nigerian or from who knows where. Exactly, exactly. And is that something that you feel like an identity of as a refugee now? Do you feel that as part of your identity? Yeah, I mean, like, even, like, for example, before now, like you said, when I think about a refugee, I think about someone who's just, I don't know, like dirty and, like, extremely poor. Like just fled a war and they're, like, cuts on them. Yeah, yeah, exactly. So when I later realized, like, when I met you and then you were helping me to come to Budapest, and I thought to myself, okay, right now I actually am a refugee, you know, and I do need help. And the thing is, even if I don't look it, I don't—it's not like I look like, I don't know, like I had torn clothes or something, you know? It's not— How do I explain it? That's not what a refugee is. It just changed my perspective of what a refugee is. That's basically what I'm trying to say. Yeah. And how are you doing? How you doing? How you doing? Did you copy that from Joey from Friends? Because you sound just like— He copied me. Yeah, I think he said it first. Yeah. No, I was like a little baby when that joke came out. How you doing? That's how you came out the womb? How you doing, Mom? His thing is, All right, all right, all right, like Dazed and Confused. Oh yeah, Matthew McConaughey. Matthew McConaughey. How do you say his surname? Wait, wait, wait, I want to hear. How do you say his surname? I don't know, McHogany. McHogany? McHogany. Like, I like the accent, but I can't say his surname. Matthew McConaughey. McConaughey. Yeah. Ah, Matthew Mahogany. Yeah, I just call him Matthew. Just call him Matthew. You guys are tight like that? Matty. I just call him Matthew. What's the craziest story that Eddie's told you? Ooh. Yeah, he told me something about, like, shoplifting when he was, like, back in the States. Yeah, that's what did me in. That's why I had to come back to Europe. And there was, like, a glass door. What did you shoplift? Alcohol. What kind of alcohol? Mostly beer. Mostly beer. Sometimes, like, bottles of liquor, the biggest ones possible. Oh, cool. We got Wakili Albert watching the show right now. That's my brother. Shout out to Albert. Albert wrote me a very nice email about saying thank you for helping Alma out. I was like, thank you for giving us Alma. He's been a blessing in all of our lives. Really? You think so? Yeah. Like you said, originally we thought I was helping Alma out, but actually he helped me out a lot. That's cute. It's mutual, man. It's mutual. Yeah, that's cute. It's mutual. So back when the days when you were shoplifting, you never thought that you'd end up in Budapest with a documentary film crew and a Nigerian-Ukrainian refugee, a Nigerian-Ukrainian professional soccer player refugee. Funny how life works out. Yeah, honestly. You never know what's gonna happen. Yep, yep. You never know. And the thing is, you know when they say, like, everything... You know, it works together for good in the end. I mean, if—I'm not saying war is a good thing, but I mean, if this war never happened, I wouldn't have met you guys, and you guys are really good people, honestly. Like, you are. Like before, like when I told my dad that you were—because he tried to ask me, like, what kind of person are you? Are you, like, do you work, like, with the church? Are you a missionary? Like, because I told him, like, you are so nice and all of that. And then I told him, no, actually, you just have, like—how do I call it? Way too much free time. No, you just, like, you have, like, a charity program that you are, like, running, and he looked at me, and he's like, Oh, really? Like, he never knew that there were people like that. He just thought if you are so kind to people, you have to, like, be connected to a church or something like that. I told him, no, actually. Well, it's funny, I don't even—you know, I'm not really running a charity program. We just asked for some donations and it sort of spiraled into that. Yeah. And then we went away for a wedding for a couple weeks. Yeah. So the momentum kind of slowed down. But the problems—one thing that we're trying to do now with this podcast, and we're going to have another group on on Saturday, which is my friend Sam, and he's an American, and he's doing some remarkable work with these two girls—you met them, Lisa and Julia, the singers. All the singers. Yeah. And so these people that I've met through this process over the past month, I mean, there's countless stories, countless people, and not all of them are still in Budapest, but I'm trying to have you guys, and then Lisa and Sam and Julia, and then next week hopefully getting this girl Anastasia to come on. So trying to, like, reinforce some of these initial contacts that we've made, because my philosophy at least is, like, you really can't help everyone, but the people that you do help, you shouldn't just offer a temporary Band-Aid. You should try to continue to help as much as possible. And I think that that's a good philosophy towards these sort of lingering, long-lasting conflicts, because if we all do our part to help out a few people over a long period of time, then, you know, I think it will always come back to you in the end and you'll get rewarded. It's a good question, actually, whether altruism is an inherently selfish thing. I mean, it could be, because, like, when you help others, when you serve others, it really helps you too, like, a ton. It's, like, the best thing you can do for yourself as well. But that's not necessarily a bad thing. I mean, I think the definition of the word selfish is— Thought of as sort of like a bad thing, but it doesn't necessarily need to be bad. I mean, I think if we're all selfish in a way that manifests the greater good, that that would be great. Selfish needs a little bit of a makeover, maybe. Goes around, comes back around. But do you think that altruism or charity, do you think it's a selfish task? No, not at all, really. No. Why would— You feel better? But I don't think it's negative. No, it's not negative at all. Exactly. So I guess the way that I mean selfish in that, like you do it for recognition— Maybe not even recognition. Like a lot of people, I think they do silent, or that they, you know, I happen to have a platform. So can, like, being selfish, can it be like a positive thing, being selfish? Yeah, I think so. I think that was— Because I've always seen, like, selfish as, like, a negative thing, when you use the word selfish. Marco just chatted in, Alma the savior. You know, Marco, because now what's your status? You're playing with Marco's team. Yeah, yeah. So right now, I have, like, before I can get a team, I have to wait till summer. So right now, what I basically do is I train with Marco's team. It's a team in the fourth division here, so I train with them three to four times a week, you know, just to stay fit. And I also run a lot on the Margaret Island. I also go to the gym. Yeah, I can't say that. And then I go to the gym also with Eddie, so— I try to tell him to lift, but he's always doing, like, cardio, cardio and stuff. So at the border, when we met at Beregsurány, they gave you this slip of paper. And how long did it allow you to stay in the country? It was initially for a month, yeah. A month, I think. Yeah, it was initially for a month. And then we got in touch with someone at the, like, the Helsinki Conference—Helsinki, the capital of Finland. Yeah, they have some organization, I think, like the Helsinki something, human rights. And I got in touch with this woman, Melinda, and she was kind enough— Yes, really kind of like an angel, Melinda. Very. And she was—like, God just sent lots of angels to me, really. But she helped you out to get, what, an extension to that status? Yeah, so I got an extension of two months. Two months. So when does that expire? It will expire at the end of May, May 31st. May 31st, yes. And does that allow you to work? No, no. At the moment, no. So I have to find a way to stay here for a longer period of time so that I can get a club. Exactly, because that's your profession. You know, people think like, oh, pro athlete, it's just like a fun thing, but it's not. It is a fun thing. I mean, I'm sure it's a dream. Yeah, but it's my livelihood. It's your livelihood, exactly. It's how you eat. It's how you... And also, you mentioned to me that that's how you help support your family back home as well. Yeah, yeah. And I'm the breadwinner of my family, so, like, my family heavily relies on me. How many people are in your family? I've got three brothers and a sister. Three brothers and a sister? Yeah. That's a big family. Yeah, yeah. And right now you are without a contract, and we're trying to get you a new contract. Exactly. But, and I'm sure you would love to just do some temporary part-time job while you were waiting just to make some cash. Yeah, exactly. But you can't even do that. I can't even do that, so... So that's why I would like to ask... Hello, everyone in the audience. I was just making sure I was—I just heard a background noise. I would like to make sure I ask everyone in the audience, we're going to be starting a GoFundMe page specifically to help out Alma. I know he would never ask for help, but I feel like, as I was talking about this mission of trying to reinforce the help that we've offered to others, is while he's in pursuit of this contract in this sort of, like, vague area, if we could try to collectively come together and raise some money via GoFundMe. Because GoFundMe, I've never had experience with it, but I know that it helps causes like this all the time, where someone just needs a temporary, you know, lift-up or a temporary pat on the back. And how rewarding would that be to see Alma, like, four months from now get a contract with the Hungarian team and really be able to push on and have, like, a tremendous professional career? I think we could look back at all this one day as being, like, a real crossroads in your life, in your life, and my life. And it would be nice to do, like, a reunion episode in a few months. That would be so amazing. That would be so amazing. That would be so amazing, because, I mean, I think it seems to me like with your story, with this incredible, incredible mission as a 14-year-old kid coming through really, like, the odds that you told me—I mean, two out of 200, and then three out of whatever—50, and then two out of 18 out of 40, and then all these numbers. But if you actually, like, sit down and do the math, and I'm the furthest thing from a mathematician, that's probably like one in a fucking million. So, I mean, you beat the odds before. I think that we can certainly try to do it again. Yes, definitely. You sound like my dad. My dad keeps reminding me about this almost every day. You know, he just keeps telling me that, you know, you can overcome this. Just take it, you know, a step at a time, and, you know, everything will be okay. Yeah, I see it happening for you, man. Thanks, bro. Thanks, bro. We have a bright future, all of us. Cool, cool. Yeah, we’re gonna get through this. And I mean, honestly, like, in part of you must feel kind of lucky because, like, there’s obviously much more desperate situations than you right now coming from the war zone and stuff. Yeah, yeah, of course. I mean, I even had some, like, friends over in Ukraine who fled Ukraine, of course, and their conditions were, like, much worse than mine when they left, because they went through the Polish border, and they had to spend, like—I spent, like, four hours at the border, and I was complaining like it was so, so cold. And they were like, ‘We were at the border for four days. I mean, no food.’ And I was like, ‘Okay, okay, guys, I get it, I get it.’ You say it was cold. I mean, I— Yeah, no, it was freezing. I’m like a volcano, so I don’t really feel the temperatures like normal people, but it wasn’t that cold. I think coming from Nigeria, you’ve got a different perspective on temperature. Yeah, for me it was cold. Yeah, it was cold. I was, like, shaking, you know. We both come from, like, very similar climates. Really? Yeah. Pool is hot. No, Arizona. Oh, Arizona. Yeah, Eddie’s from the desert. We were trying to compete, like, where it gets hotter. Yeah, but I think— I think Phoenix wins, right? Did you— Yeah, maybe, maybe, because, yeah, yeah, that’s like a desert. Fifty degrees Celsius. Did you feel like a refugee a second time when you had to leave Phoenix? Yeah, it was weird. It was weird adjusting to living in Croatia after living in the States for so long. Would you want to live in the States again one day, or do you have, like, kind of bitter feelings towards that? I’m not bitter, but I feel like I had my time there, and it’s just, like, a different culture, different kinds of people, and I prefer Europe more. Why is that? Just the attitude, the lifestyle. Yeah, the lifestyle. It's more chill and easygoing, less of a rat race. It's interesting. I mean, we're all—I'm not really a ref, or I'm not at all a refugee, but we're all expats. We're all expats. I think that's one of the identities. We talk about identity before with the Yugoslav war, we talk about identity with the Ukrainian war, but we all have these different identities in our lives. And one identity that we mentioned before with you guys is refugee, but even probably above refugee, because that's sort of like, you know, you were a child and you aren't a native to Ukraine, so maybe this is sort of like a malleable thing. But even more than a refugee, I think we're all expats. I identify with that much more than refugee. Than refugee, yeah. I think being an expat is an interesting concept in and of itself. I mean, it's very positive in a lot of ways. There's certain things that, you know, you miss family, maybe you miss old friends. Yeah, yeah. That's the toughest part, right, is the family. The family, yeah. I mean, friends—I love my friends, but I still see my friends, and as you get older, you see friends on occasion, and the occasions are great, but you also make new friends. Like, I didn't know you guys before four years ago, and now we're all close friends. But also, you visit your family all the time. Yeah, right. You can't even go back. And they can't visit me either because they don't have passports to come out here. Oh, shit. Yeah, so it's been like seven years I haven't seen my mom or my sisters or my dad. Wow. So none of your family members—in seven years, you haven't seen any of your family members? Nope. That's tough. Yeah, it's tough. Can you go back to America? Yeah, I talk to his mom like almost every day on video. Yeah. I see my mom on Facebook Messenger video all the time. She's very cool and supportive. But yeah, I can go back. I just need to—I can go and get a fucking tourist visa and just go visit. So you're allowed to? Shoplifting doesn't prevent you? No, it doesn't prevent me. I could have done that a long time ago. I just, like, I was always putting it off. You gotta do it for the wedding in September. Yeah, I know. I have to do it for—I want to go to my own film festival premieres, which are going to be in the States. Just the way that you said that. I want to go to my own film festival premieres. I don't want to miss that. So you're going to be in a film festival? I guess, right, Galer. Yeah. He's not allowed to interact with the talent. It breaks the ethical guidelines. Oh. So you got a film coming out about—are you allowed to talk about that at all? Yeah, it's a documentary about our lives, me and my ex, and just us, like, moving from Croatia to Budapest and, like, trying to start a business here and, like, our lives here, basically. What kind of business? Webcamming. Webcamming. Yeah. Do you know what webcamming is now, Ama? Um, not really. Not, like, um... but not, like, in detail. He lives in our old room where we used to—we used it as our webcam room. Now he's living in it. Webcamming. That's like, for the layman's term, would be like a sex show. Yeah. Yeah, like a live sex show. Wow. Very interesting. A pastor's son, you've come a long way. Well, you're certainly going to have a lot of stories to tell one day, Ama. Have you ever thought about, like, trying to record any of this, like put it down on paper, or is that something that you think you'll do later on? Yeah, I'll do that later on, of course. We could record something. But I, like, I do write some notes, like some key dates and stuff like that on my phone. So, I—because I want to write a book someday, like about my life. Memoir. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, something like a memoir. Ama Wakili. Yep. The story—I don't know what the title will be, but I'm still thinking about that. The story of an apple that fell far from the tree. Yeah. I mean, your story certainly has resonated with me quite a bit. I mean, your story is crazy, but like, it's just— You're crazy. We've been—I mean, in a good way crazy. I don't think it's bad. I think that's awesome. It's very interesting. But it's something that I've grown used to over the years that I've known you. But Ama's story right now is just really resonant with me from an emotional level, and I think that it would just be really, really tremendous if we can... Try to push you over the line. I mean, I think that you're going to do it yourself. And that's what I always wonder, like, if you didn't meet me, or you didn't meet Eddie, or you didn't meet all these people, I feel like you would have made it work. It just would have been a little bit more difficult. Yeah, yeah, definitely. Less fun, probably. Yeah, because I just would have been in... The plan was just to go to Fehérvár. I didn't know how far Fehérvár was from Budapest. I knew nothing about Hungary. So I just wanted to go meet Funchal, and then we'd just take it from there. And now you're here. And now I'm here. Yep, exactly, I'm here. Doing a podcast, telling your tale. Yep. I remember the first week he was there, I was, like, getting over my breakup and just having parties all the time. And then I'm like, fuck, like, here's Alma just trying to be a good boy, like a professional athlete, and there's people just doing lines of blow on the... Oh my God, man. It's a crazy world. He puts up with a lot from me. That's all right, man. But your apartment's so big. It's a huge place, and I still have my space, you know? That's true. You can always retreat when it gets too crazy. Yep. All right, well, is there any final words that either of you would like to say before we wrap it up for the day? Do you have any message to, like, Hungary, like as a country, to your new home? Do you have any message to the Hungarians out there in the audience that might be watching? No, I know nothing of Hungary. I only know Köszönöm. Köszönöm, yeah? What about the one I taught you? Oh, I forgot that, man. Köszi szépen. Yeah, köszi szépen. That's like, thank you very much, yeah? Köszi szépen. Is that what you want to say to the Hungarians? Köszi szépen, yeah. Neked is. Oh no, no. Which one's that? Sivashen. What does that mean? That's what we say to you. One final cheers here to— I'm gonna do mine with— to the apple that fell far from the tree, Eddie the Horvath, and to the Ukrainians continuing to just be miraculous and get through this tough time, and inspiring us all, and to peaceful and blissful times ahead this summer for everyone in the world, even those in Russia, except for a few of them. Well, not— you know, that's for debate. But I just hope that we can get through this as a global society and come out the other end stronger. And that's all I gotta say. So thanks for watching. Look out for Alma's GoFundMe page. We're gonna be setting that up real soon, and I really hope that people will be inspired to contribute and to help out. I've got a few other things that I'd like to help out with, with the Ukrainian cause more directly, so stay tuned for that. Stay tuned for Eddie's documentary and the film festival premieres that he's got to get to in America this fall. Coming soon this fall. Yep. Thank you, everybody, in advance. Thank you in advance. Thank you retroactively. God bless. Köszönöm szépen. Shokalom. And we'll see you soon. We got another episode of With Willie podcast coming this Saturday, special edition, so stay tuned for that. Have a nice day. Szép napot. All right, all right, all right.
