Birthday boy Wanyama urges Kenyans to support Spurs

Harambee Stars captain, Victor Wanyama celebrated his 25th birthday on Saturday with a call on football fans in Kenya to support Tottenham Hotspur as he seeks to have a memorable debut season at White Hart Lane.

“How are you Kenyans. Thank you for your support so far. I urge you to join Spurs and support the team. I’ll be grateful if you do so and I hope we have a good season ahead.

“In doing so we shall continue to fly our Kenyan flag high,” the defensive midfielder who joined Spurs from Southampton earlier in the week said in a special video message.

He was dressed in the team’s sky blue away jersey and the delight was all there to see as he hopes to be a key part of Mauricio Pochettino’s revolution at the North London club.

His message was aimed at convincing his compatriots, most who support Spurs bitter rivals from North London, Arsenal to convert.

The tenacious midfielder has broken new ground on more than one occasion during his career, becoming the first Kenyan to score in the UEFA Champions League during his stint at Celtic between 2011-13.

He subsequently became the first man from the East African nation to grace the Premier League when Pochettino took him to Southampton in July, 2013.

The midfielder has signed a contract with Tottenham until 2021.

Born in Nairobi, Wanyama left Kenya for Europe in 2007 when he joined Helsingborg in Sweden.

Less than a year later, he joined Belgian side Beerschot AC where he made 56 appearances before a move to Glasgow Celtic in July, 2011.

He won the league title in his first season in Scotland before enhancing his reputation further in 2012-13 with 49 appearances as Celtic clinched the SPL and Scottish Cup double.

The Stars captain scored nine goals in that campaign including the opener against Barcelona in a famous 2-1 win in the Champions League at Parkhead, as they went on to advance to the knockout stages.

His performances earned him the SPL’s Young Player of the Year award.

Pochettino took the tough-tackling midfielder to Southampton for the start of the 2013-14 campaign.

He played a key role as the Saints racked up finishes of eighth (2013-14), seventh (2014-15) and sixth (2015-16) in his three seasons at St Mary’s. During that time he made 97 appearances in all competitions, scoring four goals.

At international level, Victor made his debut for Kenya at just 15 years of age and he is now the captain of the national side.