Real Madrid were yesterday held to a 1-1 by Las Palmas in their third game in the Spanish LaLiga. A result which means they have won one of their first three games of their title defence, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.
Coach Carlo Ancellotti picked the illustrious and well respected duo of Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Jnr in attack with the latter rescuing a point for them via the spot with 19 minutes left to play in the game.
Trailing 0-1 after five minutes, the Spanish giants threw everything at their host in their bid to draw level but met a well structured defence line, which includes one of their former youth team prospect Marvin Park.
Full name Marvin Olawale Akinlabi Park, the 24 year old who has now moved to a more defensive role at right back from an offensive winger didn’t give Mbappe or Vinicius Jnr any joy coming down his flanks.
But who exactly is Park and what is the connection that earned him two Nigerian middle names and an Asian name as his surname?
Reading his full name on his ID, Marvin Olawale Akinlabi Park, Real Madrid found it hard to believe he is Spanish when they made the move to sign him as a 16 year old. They later discovered that the prodigy was the child of a Nigerian father, Akeem Olawale, and a South Korean mother, Hye Sook Park.
Both humble people, who work in a hotel in Mallorca, Park and Olawale first met at the island, where their son was born two decades ago. Using his parent and his place of birth, Park who has been capped once by Spain at U20 level is eligible for two other countries in Nigeria and South Korea.
Highly rated by Real Madrid legend and former coach Zinedine Zidane who gave him his breakthrough in 2021 by playing him in four games for the main team, he left Real Madrid in 2022 and had two separate loan spells with Las Palmas before making the move permanent for €2m this summer.
His rise will no doubt put him in the frame for a senior national team call up from Spain, else one of the two of Nigeria or South Korea will be banging on his doors to have him in their setup.
Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman
