Ssesaazi Sulaiman’s rise to UPL.

It’s a humbling journey from Busunju to the top of Ugandan football. Almost playing at all levels, it’s not every day that a star rises from such a humble background. But when they do rise, indeed, they shine as stars. Today, I take you through the journey of our defender-cum-midfielder.

The making of Ssesaazi Sulaiman

Ssesaazi Sulaiman was born in Busunju, Mityana district, 60km away from the capital of Uganda, Kampala. Starting out as a little boy playing in the Busunju Soccer academy, the little Sulaiman received encouragement and support from the dear father.

As he carried on with his studies, his talent was molded alongside his academics. He completed primary school and swiftly joined Nakaseke International College for his secondary studies. With a focused mindset, he made sure to utilize his time at school to the very best, excelling in his A-level studies and achieving alongside his peers as a spot in the East Africa Secondary School Games, which, on a fortunate or unfortunate note, were hosted in Uganda at Gulu University.

These achievements at an early age in the sport attracted interest from various scouts and team managers. Subsequently, the young vibrant defender was signed by third division club Luweero United. Blessed with intelligent game reading, strong defensive command, excellent passing abilities, shooting skills, superb free-kick execution, and outstanding leadership qualities, Ssesaazi was a valuable addition to any team.

The young lad was introduced to the Masaza Cup, a prestigious amateur tournament in Uganda. Vibrant with impressive crowds gathering to watch the games from different county grounds in Buganda, this was yet another opportunity for the young lad to showcase his great potential. Indeed, he did, as he later attracted the attention of booming Bulemeezi FC, who were undergoing a rebranding process and needed characters like Ssesaazi to add great value to their rebuilding efforts.

The defender saw his breakthrough when he scored four goals in the Masaza Cup tournament hosted in Njeru. This was an unusual scoring rate for a defender, but it came as no surprise to him, as he had been one of the top scorers at his regional club, Luweero United.

During the same year, Ssesaazi, captaining Luweero United, led the team to the FUFA Big League after securing two wins in playoffs. Firstly, they defeated Buwambo United to win the Buganda Region League Championship. Then, they faced off against Kampala Champions, Catda FC, in a final match for a single slot in the Big League. Catda FC had previously beaten Edgars Youth Program FC in the Kampala Championship.

Many would have been glad to now play in Uganda’s second tier of football hierarchy. However, for Ssesaazi, this was met with mixed reactions as he was a continuing student whose talent was facilitating his schooling journey. According to regulations, he could not play in the University League if he was licensed to play for Luweero United in the Big League. Similarly, the same rule applied to the Masaza Cup, where he still had a year left before he could sign out of the tournament after completing his maximum years featuring in it.

With all considered, he decided to bid farewell to his club, which he had captained to advancement to the new league. In a shock move, Ssesaazi signed for CATDA FC, a team he had defeated in the FUFA Big League playoffs. Featuring for a vibrant team in the center of the capital further gave him more exposure and an opportunity to advance his career.

Upon completion of his four years in the Masaza Cup, Ssesaazi was a record-scoring defender with 12 goals in three years for Bulemeezi FC.

Signing for NEC FC,

In one of the most memorable moments, Ssesaazi remembers receiving a call from Mr. Lukyamuzi Skills. “Hello, Ssesaazi,” went the deep voice through my phone, leaving me wondering who had called me,” Ssesaazi narrates. After introducing himself to me, the pleasure I felt was unimaginable as he told me he wanted me to join him at NEC FC.

The rest of the negotiations went well, as my intuition told me my moment had come. I signed for NEC Football Club, and willingly, I was ready to represent.

Big League football

With the chance to finally play Big League football, I was all in and ready. Having promoted Luweero United but not being able to feature for them, the opportunity had finally come, and I grabbed it with both hands.

“On reporting for duty, I found familiar faces at the club, those I had played with, and others who I had played against,” noted Ssesaazi. Having played as a holding midfielder at CATDA, Ssesaazi was now back playing in defense with instructions from the ball-playing coach, Skills. Built as an impressive adopter, good student, and flexible learner, Ssesaazi was a good fit for Skills’ back three as the central man. An impressive passer of the ball, with great game intelligence and leadership qualities, Ssesaazi eased Skills’ work in setting up a formidable backline of three men.

After playing and winning our first three games, everyone had belief in the team and the possibility of progressing to the top of Ugandan football. We all believed, and the hard work had to continue with our focus now on the UPL.

“One of those factors people would not easily notice was the fact that Coach Skills was a great teacher, an intelligent man. He could teach you and improve you,” noted Ssesaazi as he described his former head coach.

The season ended after we had played 30 games, and Ssesaazi had featured in more than 20 games, making him one of the significant pillars of our promotion to the StarTimes Uganda Premier League.

Life in Uganda Premier League

Our promotion to the StarTimes Uganda Premier League brought great joy to everyone associated with the club. However, as expected, many changes were inevitable, and indeed, they did come. Ssesaazi found himself among those who retained their spot in Mbalangu’s team, as a number of his Big-League teammates were axed, probably for not being able to meet the demands of the league.

The teachable, professional has indeed been an ever-present player for Coach Mbalangu, who has handed him 17 appearances out of the 24 games played by the time of this article. He has featured 15 times in the StarTimes Uganda Premier League while playing twice in the Stanbic Uganda Cup. At the restart of the second round, he battled illness that kept him out for the first three fixtures of the second round and the Round of 64 in the Uganda Cup.

He has been deployed both at the back and in his most desired holding midfield role, which he joyfully plays, relishing making tackles with more freedom in the middle of the pack, dictating the tempo of the game, and enjoying more possession. The formerly known goal-scoring defender is still on a search for his first goal in the StarTimes Uganda Premier League. He will find solace in the goal he scored in the Big League as hope that he can still score more for NEC FC.

“Coach Mbalangu is a winning coach; he clearly understands winning. He is very demanding, and you have to be hardworking. But importantly, he is a good father,” Ssesaazi noted as he described his coach.

This is the story of a young man turned professional footballer from Busunju, who with desire and determination rose to the highest level of Ugandan football. Through the years, he is determined to consistently keep the trajectory moving upwards as he evolves into an even better player.