Ajayi Oluseye (born 12 April 1975) is a Nigerian former football player and current coach.[1] He played professionally in Oman, Brunei and Malaysia. He currently works as a coach at the Premier Football Academy in Abuja.[2]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ajayi Oluseye | ||
| Date of birth | (1975-04-12) 12 April 1975 (age 47)[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Lagos, Nigeria | ||
| Position(s) | Striker | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1992–1993 | Shooting Stars | ||
| 1994–1995 | Julius Berger | ||
| 1996–2001 | Al-Seeb Club | ||
| 2001 | → DPMM FC (loan) | ||
| 2002–2005 | DPMM FC | (65) | |
| 2005 | Brunei | (4) | |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20 April 2021 | |||
Oluseye started his playing career as a striker at Shooting Stars S.C. before transferring to Al-Seeb Club of Oman, where he reportedly became top scorer in the 1999–2000 Omani League and helped his team finish in third place.[3][4][5] He attended trials held by newly established DPMM FC of Brunei in early 2001 and signed full terms the following year, just in time for the inaugural 2002 Proton B-League.[6][7] He scored seven goals before succumbing to an injury suffered at a friendly tournament between rounds, forcing a premature end to his season.[8]
Oluseye was back to Brunei for the 2003 B-League and started some hot form which would last for two seasons.[9] He first scored four goals against IBM Bukok in an 11-0 routing of the Temburong District side on 30 May,[10] followed by a first-half hattrick against Jerudong FC on 4 July.[11] Having been made captain by the club and tasting regional club football at the 2003 ASEAN Club Championship,[12] Oluseye led the goalscoring charts and finished with 28 goals,[13] yet failed to defend the league title due to a 1–3 defeat by the Armed Forces which handed the championship to unbeaten Wijaya FC.[14]
Oluseye began the 2004 season by smashing a 23-minute hattrick against defending champions Wijaya on 9 May, eager to prove a point.[15] His next outing was against Kasuka FC on 11 June, when he repeated his three-goal haul in a 7–0 victory.[16] Five days later, Sengkurong FC were the third victims of Oluseye's triple prowess.[17] It was not until 25 August that he scored his fourth hattrick of the season against Kota Ranger, with DPMM running away as 11-0 winners.[18] A fifth hattrick of the season came against QAF FC near the end of the season and DPMM ended their campaign as unbeaten champions with Oluseye reaching the 30-goal mark.[19] He also managed to get a Brunei FA Cup winner's medal by beating MS ABDB 3–1 on penalties in the final match, scoring the winning penalty.[20]
When DPMM's domestic double-winning coach Amir Alagic took the reins of the Brunei representative team playing in Malaysia's second tier, Oluseye was brought to the team as their import player.[21] A hat-trick in his debut brought hope to a languishing Brunei side fighting to keep attendances,[22] but eventually the team suffered poor form and lost their final four games and finished in mid-table.[23][24] Ajayi quietly left Brunei after the season's end and studied for his coaching badges in his native Lagos, eventually becoming head coach of Premier Football Academy in 2015.[2]
B-League/Brunei Premier League top scorers | |
|---|---|