Former Abubakar Bukola Saraki (ABS) Ilorin Football Club defender, Benjamin Chiemela Fredrick debuted for the Nigerian national team, the Super Eagles in final match of the 2025 Unity Cup, which the team won after beating the Reggae Boyz of Jamaica 5-4 on penalties, after playing out a two-all draw at regulation time.

He helped the Super Eagles lift their first trophy in 12 years.

And a few days after that, another ABS FC product, Olakunle Junior Olusegun, who plays for Russian club, Krasnodar, got a call up to the senior national team.

Olakunle will be among the 20 Super Eagles players listed to represent Nigeria in an international friendly match against Russia national team on Friday.

This follows a number of withdrawals and injuries to some players ahead of the international friendly match in Moscow, from the original list drawn up by Super Eagles’ Head Coach Eric Sekou Chelle.

The team arrived in Moscow on Monday June 2, 2025, and began training sessions on Tuesday. The match will take place at the 78, 000-capacity Luzhniki Stadium, which is the largest football stadium in Russia, and the ninth-largest in the whole of Europe.

Olakunle will join Victor Boniface, Simon Moses and Tolu Arokodare in the attack against Russia. The duo, Fredrick and Olakunle will dorn the National colours against Russia on Friday.

Olakunle, who started his football journey from Arsenal Kiddies Football Academy in Ilorin, began at age six, and rose to fill a huge gap in youth football in the state, participating in virtually all the age grade competitions, enough to prepare him for bigger occasions, from where he rose to play in the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) for ABS FC at the age of 17, and also, the national U-17 team, Golden Eaglets.

He played in the African U-17 qualifiers and the World Cup in Brazil.

He was the Captain of the victorious ABS FC team that won the maiden edition of the NPFL/LaLiga U15 Promises in Lagos, in 2017.

Far back in the 70s, A’ Division Police Barracks, Ilorin served as the make-shift stadium for Kwara state. That was before the construction of the Kwara State Stadium Complex, Ilorin, in 1977. The ground hosted big games then, and some of the matches and notable players that participated in those matches are up till today, reference points in football circles in and around the state.

That was the pitch from where Olakunle began his career, with Arsenal Kiddies Football Academy, introduced and being managed by a LaLiga trained Coach, Soni Ahamioje.

Because of the abundant talents that exist at the grassroots, Arsenal Kiddies Football Academy was established some years ago at A-Division Barracks, with talented Police children forming the majority of the players.

Olakunle hails from Ekan, in Oke-Ero Local Government Area of Kwara state. And his background may have prepared him well for a hard life. Apart from playing football, Olakunle learnt carpentry; he was a cobbler and a poultry farmer.

He attended Bishop Smith Memorial Primary School, Olumawu Secondary School and CAC Secondary School. He joined Kwara Football Academy from Arsenal Kiddies in 2014. He spent only a year in the institution that combines the teachings of football and education, and left because he cannot cope with the new school fees regime introduced then.

He went back to Arsenal Kiddies in 2015.

Olakunle later joined Abubakar Bukola Saraki U-15 team. Olakunle was Captain of the Abubakar Bukola Saraki (ABS FC) Ilorin Football Club that won the LaLiga U-15 Promises championship, a competition that involved all the U-15 teams of all the NPFL clubs in 2017. He was picked as the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the tournament, after leading the team to victory, as they beat Katsina United 3-1 in the final.

Olakunle, because of his performance, as well as the request by the league organizers that he be registered for the league, was brought to the mainstream, and registered for the NPFL by ABS FC. Olakunle is a complete footballer, a gentleman, a born leader and a hard-working Entrepreneur.

The ABS Ilorin FC forward joined Boldklubben Fremad Amager, a Danish professional football club based in the district of Amager Vest, Copenhagen, for an undisclosed fee in a long term contract.

In August 2021, Olakunle’s rights were purchased by Bulgarian club Botev Plovdiv who immediately loaned him to Krasnodar-2 in Russia for the 2021–22 season. In April 2022, Olakunle was promoted to the main squad of Krasnodar and made his Russian Premier League debut on April 3rd, 2022 in a game against Dynamo Moscow.

On 14 June 2022, Olakunle transferred to FC Krasnodar on a permanent basis and signed a four-year contract with the club. On March 5th, 2024, he extended his contract with Krasnodar until June 30th, 2028.

Benjamin Chiemela Fredrick on the other hand, was a graduate of the Simoiben Football Academy set up by pro-footballer Moses Simon. Prior to the start of the 2021–22 season, he joined ABS FC. He made his debut for them in February 2022 and was given the Man of the Match award. In October 2022, he was reported to have joined Nigeria Professional Football League side Nasarawa United. He made his debut for Nasarawa in the NPFL during the 2022–23 season, playing both centre-back and right-back.

In August 2023, he signed for Premier League side Brentford on loan with the option to make the deal permanent. He was included in the Brentford first-team match day squad for the first time in January 2024, named as a substitute for an FA Cup tie against Wolverhampton Wanderers. In April 2024, it was reported that Brentford were turning the loan deal into a permanent transfer with Fredrick agreeing to a four-year contract.

Fredrick featured for the Nigeria U-20 team that finished third at the 2023 U-20 Africa Cup of Nations held in Egypt in January 2023, playing every minute as his side reached the semi-final. In May 2023 he was named in the Nigeria squad for the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup.

ABS FC’s Director of Football, Chief Alloy Chukwuemeka expressed delighted to see that both Frederick and Olakunle are progressing very well, and that the club is happy to be part of their progress.

“At ABS FC, our objectives are always the same, to discover, train and nurture to stardom. We still have plenty of Olakunles in ABS FC, but everyone will shine at their own time”, Chief Chukwuemeka said.

Chukwuemeka said that the ideology and philosophy of the team has helped many players to stardom. He further stated that the club’ strong football structure, which supports players’ development has manifested in the recent achievement of Frederick and Olakunle.

“It was a great moment for us as a club and a welcome development, in fact, it further gives credence to the positive output of our club’s long term investment in nurturing a sustainable structure that supports the growth and development of young football talents.

“With our two former players in the Super Eagles, those who have played in age group National teams, the numerous others abroad, many scattered in Nigeria top league and others, we can confidently say that we have achieved the vision and mission of the owner of the club (Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki) who gave us the mandate to use the platform to empower youths who want to make careers through football”, Chief Chukwuemeka averred.

The Founder of Arsenal Kiddies Academy, Soni Ahamioje said that the idea to form the Academy was borne out of the love and respect for Coach Arsene Wenger, the former Manager of Arsenal FC of London.

According to Ahamioje, ‘based on Wenger’s philosophy of youth football, I decided to emulate him and follow his footsteps. It wasn’t easy at the beginning because I never had any football coaching experience and also because of my excellent educational performances in School, I was not allowed to pursue professional football as a career by parents who were addicted to the education of their children.

“I said it last December, that part of my dream was to see my products play for the senior national team. That dream is being achieved. It has always been my prayer for Olakunle to play for the Super Eagles and to God be thy glory, for this wonderful news.

“I am so happy with the call up of my former Academy prodigy, Olakunle, to the Super Eagles friendly match with the Russian national team. It’s a testimony of the solid foundation and the soccer tutelage under me. It’s also a manifestation of hard work, dedication, and progressive development of the player in his Russian club side.

“It’s my wish that this call is a stepping stone to greater heights. A big congratulations to the good people of Kwara State, and best of luck to the Super Eagles in Moscow”, he concluded.