But I came to believe that God had plans for me. No one can change destiny. At last hard work and superlative performances at the maiden African Women's Championship and the World Cup in the United States opened doors of fortune. Today she is playing Collegiate football in America where she has scored around 50 goals for Milligan College while taking a degree course in Communications. With the Women's Soccer League launched in United States, the prospect of Akide becoming a target for most clubs cannot be ruled out.
Higher education is, however, an absolute necessity.
You cannot play football all your life. Yet Akide is happy to have made a breakthrough in a game which, only too recently, was seen as the exclusive preserve of the men. Nigeria have just won the African Women's Championship twice in the row with you as tournament's highest scorer for the second time with six goals. But we knew we were the best team on the continent and all it needed was to work a little harder. Happily most of the 1998 champions were still in the team so there was no problem with team work and experience.