Tobi Adeyemo: From seventh tier to helping Watford fight for promotion

January 14, 2023, will always be a special day in the life of Watford’s Tobi Adeyemo, as it saw him score his first senior goal just four minutes into his league debut.

Following that opener in the 2-0 win over Blackpool on Saturday, what happens between now and March 14 will be hugely significant for his long-term future.

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The striker turns 18 on that date and therefore will have reached an age that can prove transformative in the life of a young footballer. Up until the age of 18, clubs are only allowed to offer professional deals of three years in length, but there are no limits once a player hits adulthood.

Adeyemo — who is eligible to play for England and Nigeria — is currently on a two-year, £200-per-week scholarship contract, which academy players can be awarded from the age of 15, and as things stand will effectively be out of contract come the end of the season.

It is now down to Watford to decide if they want to offer Adeyemo a professional deal.

While he may have properly introduced himself to Watford fans with his explosive first senior appearance at Vicarage Road, he has been on the radar of other clubs, including Premier League giants, for years…

Adeyemo was born in 2005 in the Hackney area of north London and grew up near Tottenham. His footballing journey started at his primary school St Ignatius — where he had joined the nursery class at age three.

“I used to run the football team and when he was in Year Four (aged eight), I noticed him,” John Henry, who was a PE teacher at St Ignatius at the time, tells The Athletic. “I brought him in with the older children for some training sessions and he really took to it, so he was in the Year Six team from then on. His ability at that age was outstanding.”

Adeyemo would train three times a week and, as he would also do later in life, learnt to mix it with the bigger boys.

“Playing with the older kids really helped his maturity — he was beyond his age in terms of ability and that really helped his confidence,” explains Henry, who recommended Adeyemo for the local Haringey district’s representative team (coached by Tim Aleshe, who also ran the Rap Aid Academy in north London).

6⃣8⃣: On for league debut
7⃣2⃣: Scores first professional goal

What a moment for Tobi Adeyemo! 💛 pic.twitter.com/k59RxC3gU7

— Watford Football Club (@WatfordFC) January 15, 2023

“Tobi came from his primary school with a few of his friends when he was in Year Six — so 10-11 years old — and I remember one day being stood with him in the car park and he said to me, ‘Tim, find me a club for a trial and I won’t let you down’. Those were his words. I can still see his face,” Aleshe tells The Athletic.

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Aleshe founded the Rap Aid Academy in 2009 to offer young footballers from all cultures and socio-economic backgrounds in the Haringey borough of north London a chance. While he was impressed with Adeyemo the player and the young man, there needed to be a further conversation that wouldn’t involve him.

“I told him I would need to speak to his mum and dad because going to a club is quite a big commitment,” Aleshe explains. “So I met his dad at a petrol station and we sat down and I explained the process and told him his son was really good and deserved the opportunity to go for a trial and asked if they would be able to commit to taking him to training and matches. And he said, ‘Yes, we will do the best we can’.”

Adeyemo first went to Arsenal for a trial match with Rap Aid. The Premier League side liked what they saw, on and off the field.

“I remember very clearly after training they went into the changing area and he shook hands with the coach and he said, ‘Thank you for the opportunity’ and the coach looked at him and told him that he would definitely be coming back tomorrow,” explains Aleshe. “He was simply so happy to be there, but that is Tobi, he looked the coach in the eye and shook his hand, he is so humble. So Arsenal liked him and he played against Chelsea and scored against them in an under-14s game.”

Chelsea’s interest was piqued and they sent an email to Adeyemo’s father, but it proved to be a Sliding Doors moment. “They invited him for a trial but it got lost in his inbox somewhere and by the time he got it, he had already gone to Watford for another trial,” says Aleshe.

Watford were also impressed with the then-13-year-old, who went on to study at St Thomas More secondary school in Wood Green, north London.

“In one of his first games, they played him up against a higher age group and he picked up the ball, ran away from the defender and scored into the top corner,” Aleshe says. “They had him for about two weeks and they signed him.”

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Adeyemo officially became part of the Watford academy at the start of October 2018. Four years and three months later, he would score his first senior goal for the club.

“Dreams do come true!”

An emotional Tobi Adeyemo on his goalscoring debut. 🗣#WatfordFC pic.twitter.com/0GEAGAvefc

— Watford Football Club (@WatfordFC) January 14, 2023

Adeyemo came on in a pre-season game against non-League neighbours Hitchin Town last July, with Watford’s then-head coach Rob Edwards and sporting director Cristiano Giaretta watching on.

“I couldn’t believe he was only 17,” Hitchin manager Mark Burke tells The Athletic. “Afterwards I spoke with Omer (Riza, Watford Under-21s’ lead coach) and said that we’d like to take him. At that point they wanted to keep him in the academy setup for a bit longer, but I kept persisting and then eventually we got him in November.”

On November 28, Watford announced Adeyemo was being loaned to the Southern League Premier Division side, albeit with the extra detail of the move being “work experience” until Christmas Day. “We couldn’t get him on a proper loan as he was too young,” says Burke with a smile.

The striker almost made an instant impact in the seventh tier. “We brought him on against Redditch and with his third touch he almost scored, but the chance went just wide,” says Burke.

Adeyemo then featured off the bench against Basford in the next game, before returning to Watford to play in an FA Youth Cup victory over Lincoln City on December 19. On the second day of the new year, he started his first, and probably last, game for Hitchin — a 3-0 loss away to Suffolk side Needham Market.

“He is such a grounded guy, I actually took him home after one of our games and got to have a chat with him. I think (he) can have a real future in the game,” adds Burke.

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The teenager then went back to Watford before their FA Cup tie against fellow Championship side Reading on January 7, placing him under the club’s recently appointed head coach Slaven Bilic.

He made his senior debut in that game, a 2-0 away defeat, with Bilic saying: “He came on for 15 minutes and he lifted the whole team with his running and his brain, doing what the manager is asking from the striker in that position.”

Although Watford went out of the FA Cup that day, it was an important step forward for Adeyemo. “I want to thank all the coaches that have played a part in my journey so far,” he said afterwards.

And these weren’t just empty platitudes.

Aleshe says: “When he made his debut (against Reading), he called me and was telling me he was sat on the bench and had a feeling that, ‘This is it’, but he was thinking about his journey and that helped to calm down. So many players don’t remember where they came from and show gratitude, (but) he is forever grateful and that is the most special thing.”

Two days after that Reading tie, Adeyemo was back with the under-18s last Monday, playing a vital role in the 3-1 win over Everton and helping them secure a place in the FA Youth Cup’s last 16, where either Newcastle or Arsenal (they meet on Tuesday) await. He then returned to the first team fold before Blackpool’s weekend visit.

“We planned that he was going to come on (against Blackpool) when we would (hopefully) be winning, and then we would put him on to help close them down,” says Bilic. “But this was a bit different because we also needed him to be creative and good on the ball, and that’s exactly what the boy did.”

The man of the moment. 🤩

🤳 A message from Tobi Adeyemo! pic.twitter.com/dT0RHIMwk3

— Watford Football Club (@WatfordFC) January 14, 2023

His goal, four minutes after coming on in the 68th minute, made him the sixth-youngest league scorer in the history of a club founded in 1881, at 17 years and 306 days. “I was in shock, honestly,” Adeyemo said afterwards.

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Bilic was impressed: “It was a proper finish and I like that mentality.”

His former PE teacher, Henry, says: “I was at the airport picking up my mum when he played against Blackpool and didn’t realise he was in the squad. When I saw that he’d scored I thought, ‘Oh my word’. Whichever team he plays for is my second team now.”

Adeyemo will now knuckle down in training, most likely with a first team currently third in the fight to win Premier League promotion, and wait to hear about his contractual situation via the club and his representatives.

“It’s an indescribable feeling,” he said. “I want to thank my family and all the staff at Watford for helping me on this journey. The hard work never stops.”

(Top photo: Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

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