By Mazi Jaka

• Vicky is just as passionate about art as football

• Decorates her teammates boots with her designs

• Talks art, drawing and beauty

There’s something about football that lends the sport to metaphor; the game as a battle, matches as war and creative players as artists.

Victoria is one of the rare cases where metaphor meets reality.

On the pitch, Akwa Ibom State born dynamic defender is equally at home in defence or attack where she’s a constant source of danger down the right flank; off the pitch she’s just as comfortable with a pencil or paintbrush in her hands as she is with a ball at her feet.

The 22-year-old defender is a rarity in her home state as one of the few footballers to have ventured outside the State to seek her career elsewhere like in Abịa State where she is now the captain of Abịa Angels. She also rarity more generally as a player whose creative talents on the pitch are matched by her artistic ambitions off it, as she tells FIFA.

“From a young age, I always wanted to be an artist. Painting represents my need for tranquility and reflection. Art, drawing and beauty.

“I don’t think this only applies to professional athletes, but rather for any person or individual, but it’s important to appreciate beauty and find goodness in life.

For a player who, until few years ago was the SUG Director of Sports in University of Uyo (Uniuyo), the Akwa Ibom State capital was the ideal setting to explore her passions on the pitch and off it. Vicky admits that after the move to Abịa State where she joined Abịa Angels, she didn’t have quite as much time to draw, sketch and paint, but she still tries to squeeze in sessions in front of the pad or easel as often as she can.

“I loved painting when I was a child but perhaps I missed my opportunity to do it. If I’d have pursued painting back then, maybe I wouldn’t have discovered football.

“Nevertheless, I still have a passion for painting and still do it as a hobby. Painting is calming, whereas football is intense and passionate.”

“Art has given me a new perspective on life, on things and on people.”

Born and raised in one of Akwa Ibom State’s most scenic cities, Uyo, just to the South of Calabar, painting is not just a solitary pursuit for Eyakndue but also something that she can share with her team-mates.

She has become well-known at both club and national level for taking her paintbrush to her team-mates’ boots, with some creative designs arising from those sessions.

“One of my teammates loves Justin Bieber and Burna Boy, so I painted a design on the shoes based on Bieber’s album Yummy,” she said. “She loves them! I gave her the shoes as a birthday gift. I’ve designed my own sneakers as well, but they are almost worn out.”

“Drawing has captured my attention; it allows me to be in a calm and peaceful state of mind when I’m under pressure and feeling tense. So, I believe drawing has been helpful for my football career by helping me to find inner peace.

“As an individual, I need time to myself but as a member of the squad (Abịa Angels), I need to spend time with my team-mates and coaches.

“So, when I’m painting, I’m taking some time for myself and I enjoy it but when I’m playing football, I like the happiness that comes from being with friends.

Victoria Eyakndue and her Abịa Angels team mates will be resuming full training ahead of next season having finished sixth on the log last season in the NWFL.