Black Stars defender, Alidu Seidu, has shared a harrowing experience of his life, recounting a traumatic experience where he was hit with a machete during a street fight - an incident that left him bedridden in the hospital for four months.
Opening up about his challenging upbringing, Seidu said that he once led a life as a bandit, engaging in fights and wielding machetes on the streets of Kumasi.
Speaking in an interview cited by GhanaWeb, the defender admitted to his past actions, explaining, "I was also a bit of a bandit. I fought wherever I could. I hit people or people hit me. As I went out all the time, I copied other people's characters; the older ones taught me how to become a bad guy."
Alidu Seidu vividly described the intense neighbourhood rivalries, saying, "I was waging war against the other neighbourhoods. For example, if we played a football match and we lost or there was a problem, we fought. And if there were machetes, we hit each other with them."
The turning point in Seidu's life came when he faced a life-threatening situation during one of these street fights.
Recounting the incident, he told Ligue Un TV, "One day, I was hit with a machete, but I was lucky, I didn't die. I spent three months in the hospital."
Despite the challenges, Seidu considers himself fortunate to have survived.
The defender emphasized the transformative impact of this near-death experience, stating, "Today, fortunately, I left this bandit side, and I am a football player!"
Alidu Seidu's life took a positive turn when he was scouted by an agency and subsequently enrolled in a football academy.
His breakthrough came when he travelled to France, ultimately joining the prestigious Ligue 1 side, Clermont Foot.
JNA/AE
Black Stars defender, Alidu Seidu