Tadious Manyepo — Frederick Ansah Botchway has a clearly defined mission.
He wants to make his mother proud and give his former fellow street dwellers back in Ghana a reason to smile.
The 27-year-old is the latest Ghana expatriate to join giants Dynamos following in the footsteps of now teammate Emmanuel Paga, George Owusu and many others.
But the midfielder is the only one from the list of Ghanaian players who have joined Dynamos in the past with some decent football literature on record.
He is a profiled midfielder who has posted remarkable success stories having seen action with Ghana and African powerhouse Accra Hearts of Oak where he won five trophies including the Premier League title in just two years.
The Black Stars trialist is coming as a direct replacement of Junior Makunike who is now at Simba Bhora.
Although competitive action is yet to kick-off, Botchway has already blown away Dynamos coach Genesis "Kaka" Mangombe together with his ultra-work ethic in the field of play.
He has made it clear that he wants to help the Glamour Boys achieve everything they have set out to attain in 2024.
He is goal-oriented and it could be the way he grew up in Ghana that shaped him into such a beast.
For some time, Botchway lived in the streets before he was taken to a Mission House belonging to the Gentiles Revival Ministry which had a football team called Charity FC.
The church transformed him and he would at times go for evangelism when he was not playing football.
It was at Charity FC that Botchway really got to develop into a decent footballer.
"I am from Gbese in Accra (Ghana) but I grew up a little in Mamprobi before our family moved to Odorkor when I was still a little boy.
"While still in Mamprobi, I had so much interest in football but my father didn't want me to play (the game). He was a strict man but I always got emotional whenever I saw my friends going to the grounds to play football.
"But when we moved to Odorkor, I had to be stubborn and would always sneak to play football with other boys although I would be punished upon my return," said Botchway.
"It was funny though that both my parents were football fans yet my father didn't want me to play the game.
"My mother was on my side though and with me also doing wonders, my father eventually started to see sense out of it. I was always training, either before or after school.
"Then suddenly, I moved out of home for no reason but I didn't leave my studies. But honestly football took most of my attention. When I moved out, I found myself on the streets with my friends; not bad friends but friends with the same mindset as mine.
"Our motivation was to eke out a living as footballers. There were challenges but I lived in that road or lane (sic) and I ended up in a Mission House where I was doing God's work while playing football as well. By then I had moved to another club (Charity Football Club) and that's how I was trained. Sometimes I would go for evangelism.
"I moved out from the Mission House later when I joined Liberty Professionals. I didn't go back home but went back to my friends but it wasn't stable there because of the (long) distance to our training grounds.
"We had this small room where we managed and gathered our hopes for survival, in all these challenges, I was always calling my family and they would provide assistance.
"I chose this way not to disappoint my family and friends who trust me and the vision we shared.
"Now I am the only one who is still playing football amongst my friends. I have no reason to give up but to make them proud. I thank God for everything and where I find myself now, I have been through a lot that I can't explain."
While he had a hazy upbringing, Botchway was always that youngster who coaches believed in.
While playing for a youth club called Reggae Boys, he got a chance to travel to the Netherlands for the Under-15 Manchester United Premier Cup qualification after conquering Ghana.
"We ended up being the African champions in Holland and moved to the world finals in the UK and that gave me the exposure. I found myself in the Manchester City camp, and to be precise the technical team of Manchester City was with us in Ghana, training us before we even went out for that tournament. We came sixth in the world finals."
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Botchway would play for different other teams in Ghana before he joined Ethiopian side Adama City last year.
And in January he landed at the Glamour Boys who are looking to win the league title for the first time since 2014 and also do well in the African Safari when they participate in the CAF Confederation Cup.
"I am looking forward to succeeding at Dynamos. I am glad the team has the desire to win trophies in the local scene and do well internationally."
Mangombe said Botchway's work ethic is second to none.
"He is a very good player and a hard worker. If he brings what he is giving us at training in the league and other competitions, I am sure we will do well this year," said Mangombe.
The boy has the stamina, the posture, the technique and the intelligence, at least from what he is showing at training but only time will tell.
