{"id":2229,"date":"2026-02-21T12:02:23","date_gmt":"2026-02-21T12:02:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/projects.techhivetechnologies.com\/blocktvgambia\/interview-exclusive-on-bloktvgambie-adnan-aziz-the-unbroken-road-from-benin-to-europe-through-pain-failure-resilience-and-the-dream-reborn\/"},"modified":"2026-02-21T12:02:23","modified_gmt":"2026-02-21T12:02:23","slug":"interview-exclusive-on-bloktvgambie-adnan-aziz-the-unbroken-road-from-benin-to-europe-through-pain-failure-resilience-and-the-dream-reborn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/projects.techhivetechnologies.com\/blocktvgambia\/interview-exclusive-on-bloktvgambie-adnan-aziz-the-unbroken-road-from-benin-to-europe-through-pain-failure-resilience-and-the-dream-reborn\/","title":{"rendered":"INTERVIEW \u2013 EXCLUSIVE ON BLOCK TV GAMBIA \u201cADNAN AZIZ \u2014 THE UNBROKEN ROAD: FROM BENIN TO EUROPE, THROUGH PAIN, FAILURE, RESILIENCE AND THE DREAM REBORN\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

INTERVIEW \u2013 EXCLUSIVE ON BLOCK TV GAMBIA
\n\u201cADNAN AZIZ \u2014 THE UNBROKEN ROAD: FROM BENIN TO EUROPE, THROUGH PAIN, FAILURE, RESILIENCE AND THE DREAM REBORN\u201d
\nBlokTVGambie is proud to present an exceptional long-format interview with Adnan Aziz, one of the most resilient, overlooked, and misunderstood young talents of West African football. A player whose career has been shaped not by privilege, but by obstacles \u2014 administrative battles, injuries, transfers that collapsed at the last minute, and the constant necessity to prove himself again and again.
\nThis is not just an interview.
\nIt is the intimate journey of a footballer who has faced more challenges at 23 years old than some players face in an entire career.
\nIt is the story of a boy who started on dusty fields in Benin and fought his way to France, Italy, and eventually towards the Nigerian Premier League \u2014 before seeing a dream collapse in the last hours of the mercato.
\nYet, nothing broke him.
\nNothing stopped him.
\nNothing changed the fire.
\nToday, Adnan Aziz sits down with Block TV Gambia for a brutally honest, powerful, and deeply emotional 20-minute interview.
\nBLOCK TV GAMBIA<\/strong>: Adnan, let\u2019s start from the beginning. Before Europe, before the trials, before the injuries\u2026 who was the young Adnan in Benin?
\nAdnan Aziz:
\nI grew up as a child of football \u2014 not because it was easy, but because it was my only weapon. In 2014, I started my formation with Soleil FC Benin and later Tchemabi FC Benin. Those clubs shaped me. We didn\u2019t have perfect pitches, perfect equipment, or perfect conditions, but we had heart.
\nAt that time, I didn\u2019t even truly understand the football world. I only knew one thing: I wanted to play. I wanted to fight. I wanted to leave something behind. My dreams were bigger than my surroundings, and football was the only door I saw.
\nThose years built my foundation \u2014 technique, discipline, but mostly hunger.
\nBLOCK TV GAMBIA<\/strong>: In 2018, you left Benin and went to France. How did that change your life?
\nAdnan:
\nMy move to Angers MFC, France, in 2018 was the first time I realised that football is not just a talent \u2014 it\u2019s a system, a culture, and a battlefield. Everything changed: the tempo, the physical intensity, the tactical intelligence, the demands outside the pitch.
\nI was a young African boy arriving with nothing except hope. I had no family around, no stability, no guaranteed future. But I had a work ethic, and that saved me.
\nI learned fast. I adapted. I sacrificed.
\nThose years in Angers made me a real footballer \u2014 not just a street player with talent.
\nBLOCK TV GAMBIA<\/strong>: Then came 2021 \u2014 your transfer to Saumur Olympique in France, National 2. What did this step represent?
\nAdnan:
\nIt was my first real professional environment, my first taste of structured European competition. National 2 is a tough league \u2014 physical, aggressive, mature.
\nAt Saumur Olympique, I understood professional responsibility. You are judged every week, every training session. There is no room for excuses. You must perform or lose your spot. It was a school of discipline.
\nI grew in confidence, in personality, and in understanding the game at a higher level.
\nBLOCK TV GAMBIA<\/strong>: In 2022, a new adventure \u2014 ASD Juvenilia Roseto in Italy, 5th division. How did that chapter begin and eventually change your life?
\nAdnan:
\nItaly was supposed to be my rebirth \u2014 a new country, new style, new opportunity. I signed for ASD JUVENILIA ROSETO with ambition and excitement. But life had a different plan.
\nIn 2022, I suffered a serious knee injury.
\nThe kind of player no one wants to hear about.
\nThe kind that makes you question everything.
\nI needed surgery. I saw everything stop around me \u2014 matches, training, progression. I spent months in rehabilitation rooms instead of on the pitch. I watched my teammates playing while I fought pain and doubt.
\nThat injury changed me forever.
\nIt made me mentally stronger.
\nIt forced me to rebuild myself from zero.
\nIt showed me that football is not just physical \u2014 it is emotional, psychological, and spiritual.
\nI survived that dark period. And that\u2019s why I\u2019m still here.
\nBLOCK TV GAMBIA<\/strong>: Despite the injury, you were selected for the Benin U23 national team in 2022. How did that feel?
\nAdnan:
\nIt was one of the proudest moments of my life.
\nGetting selected for the Benin U23 national team for the preparation of the 2023 U23 AFCON qualifiers in Morocco\u2026 that was recognition. It meant: \u201cWe see you. We believe in you.\u201d
\nEven though I was injured, I carried that honour with pride. It reminded me that my journey had meaning.
\nBLOCK TV GAMBIA: Let\u2019s talk about the most recent event \u2014 the failed transfer to the Nigerian Premier League in 2026. What exactly happened?
\nAdnan:
\nThat transfer was supposed to be a new beginning. Everything was ready. Contract negotiations progressed well. I was excited. Nigeria\u2019s Premier League is competitive, respected, full of exposure.
\nBut in the final hours of the mercato, everything collapsed.
\nThere was a final disagreement between the parties, and \u2014 the biggest problem \u2014 the FIFA International Transfer Certificate (ITC) did not arrive on time. Without that document, I could not be registered before the official closing of the transfer window.
\nIt was heartbreaking.
\nImagine preparing mentally, physically, emotionally\u2026 only to see the door shut because of administrative delays.
\nBut I didn\u2019t break.
\nI told myself:
\n\u201cIf a door closes, it means a better one is opening soon.\u201d
\nBLOCK TV GAMBIA<\/strong>: How do you deal with repeated disappointments \u2014 injuries, failed transfers, moments of uncertainty?
\nAdnan:
\nBecause I know who I am.
\nBecause I know where I come from.
\nBecause I know what I\u2019ve survived.
\nI survived injuries.
\nI survived distance.
\nI survived criticism.
\nI survived a transfer collapse.
\nI learned that mental strength is the real secret of football. Not speed, not technique, not power \u2014 but mentality.
\nI don\u2019t panic anymore.
\nI don\u2019t complain.
\nI don\u2019t blame anyone.
\nI focus on the next opportunity.
\nBLOCK TV GAMBIA<\/strong>: What keeps you going? What keeps the fire alive inside you?
\nAdnan:
\nMy hunger.
\nMy dream.
\nMy belief.
\nMy family.
\nMy identity.
\nMy journey.
\nI didn\u2019t suffer all this just to stay silent. I didn\u2019t fight all this just to quit now.
\nEvery morning when I wake up, I remind myself:
\n\u201cYou didn\u2019t come this far to only come this far.\u201d
\nBLOCK TV GAMBIA<\/strong>: What\u2019s next for you? What should the football world expect from Adnan Aziz?
\nAdnan:
\nI am ready for the next chapter.
\nMy body is ready.
\nMy mind is ready.
\nMy hunger is stronger than ever.
\nThe next step will be announced soon.
\nI am open to new challenges \u2014 professional, competitive, and ambitious. Whether it\u2019s Africa, Europe, or elsewhere, I will go where I am wanted, where I can grow, and where I can show my true level.
\nThe world hasn\u2019t seen the best of me yet.
\nNot even close.
\nBLOCK TV GAMBIA: What message do you send to clubs, scouts, and agents who are reading this interview?
\nAdnan:
\nLook at my journey.
\nLook at my resilience.
\nLook at my determination.
\nI am not just a player.
\nI am a survivor.
\nI am a fighter.
\nI am a competitor.
\nI am a man who turns obstacles into energy.
\nIf you sign me, you sign a warrior.
\nA professional.
\nA leader.
\nA player who never gives up.
\nI\u2019m ready.
\nBLOCK TV GAMBIA<\/strong>: And finally\u2026 what is your message to young African players facing some of the same challenges you\u2019ve survived?
\nAdnan:
\nDon\u2019t let anyone tell you what you can or cannot become.
\nDon\u2019t let failure define you.
\nDon\u2019t let injury break you.
\nDon\u2019t let paperwork discourage you.
\nDon\u2019t let people\u2019s opinions shape your destiny.
\nDream big but work even bigger.
\nRespect football.
\nRespect yourself.
\nStay humble.
\nStay disciplined.
\nStay ready.
\nYour time will come.
\nMine is coming \u2014 very soon.
\nCONCLUSION \u2014 BLOCK TV GAMBIA SPECIAL FEATURE<\/strong>
\nThis interview is more than a story.
\nIt is a statement.
\nA declaration of resilience, ambition, and faith.
\nAdnan Aziz represents a generation of African footballers who fight invisible battles behind the scenes \u2014 visas, documents, injuries, financial pressure, long waits, and endless sacrifices. Yet he remains unbroken.
\nHis journey is not over.
\nHis dream is not finished.
\nHis rise is only beginning.
\nThe world should remember his name.
\nBecause the next chapter is already writing itself.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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