When the final whistle of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) men’s football tournament sounded to signify the rise of the University of the Philippines to the summit of college football, it was also the end of the collegiate career of Most Valuable Player Stephen Permanes and fellow midfielders Jed Rances and Keith Mordeno.
Also unlikely to come back to help defend the crown is Jay Eusebio, who failed to play in the finals after suffering a shoulder injury and says he’d now like to move on to the next stage of his life.
Another key player, Ghana’s Ayi Nii Aryee, could also leave the team as he eyes a spot in a League Two team in England, which is level four on the English football system.
“I have gotten an invitation to try out for an English club,” disclosed Aryee, who first got word of the invitation from Italian scout Bonolis Sergio who is based in England.
Aryee, who has scored three goals in the UAAP and a whole lot more in the University Games for the Maroons, sought the help of fellow Ghanaian John Mensah, who plays central back for English Premier League team Sunderland.
The veteran internationalist, who has been on loan to the English club by French team Olympique Lyon for the past two years, is helping out his countryman get an opportunity to try out for Southend United FC, a League Two team based in Essex which topped League One in the 2005-06 season.
“This is only a trial program,” wrote Sergio to Aryee last February. “It is no way an assurance of a place in a team. Each player will be judged by his skills, techniques and his ability with the ball on the field of play.”
Aryee, before joining the Maroons, was stranded at the terminal of the
Diosdado Macapagal International Airport for four months in late 2006 after a failed attempt to join an African team in the Singapore S-League.
The Ghanaian, a former striker for his country’s Under-16 national team, was also a former player for Union FC in the United Football League.
The BusinessMirror first reported his saga locally and was later mentioned in British football publication FourFourTwo.
Aryee also once received an invitation to try out for French Ligue 1 squad AS Nancy but the youthful striker was prevailed upon by his parents to finish his education at UP before making one last try in the world of professional football.
“I knew about the invitation towards the end of the second round,” revealed Aryee, who has one more year of eligibility in the UAAP. “But I could not tell my teammates because it would jeopardize our focus and our mission. Now the coaches know about it and with the season over, we will see if I have a shot. It is every footballer’s dream to get an opportunity to play.”
In Photo: The Maroons’ rookie striker Jinggoy Valmayor celebrates with his teammates, including Ayi Nii Aryee (standing) after their title victory on Sunday. (Rick Olivares)
