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Even right now, he’s still a major force in guiding and directing our football, which is now on the ascendancy, as he is presently the team manager of the senior national squad- The Scorpion. It is in this light, that Encounter INSIDE GAMBIA finds it worthwhile to bring you a profile of this football legend. Please sit back, relax and enjoy the reading. Biri Biri the son of the late Alhajie Ngooze Njie was born at Perseverance Street, Banjul in 1945.He attended Crab Island Secondary School where his talents were first discovered in the Inter-school Soccer competitions when Biri dominated Junior Soccer and brought many honours to his school.Biri started playing active soccer at a tender age for the then Black Star Football Club, a team he only played for once. Due to his amazing skills, pace and goal-poaching instincts, he was invited to join the Black Diamonds. Again, he caught the attention of other talent scouts, who snatched him. For some time, he plied his trade at the White Phantoms before leaving yet again for Arrance FC, which had a galaxy of stars at the time. The young talented Biri Biri felt very at home here, competing with other gifted nimble-footed footballers. One could recall the combination between the late Yusu Samba (Pele) and Biri in his Arrance hey day. After winning a championship trophy for Arrnace in 1965, he was again invited to join the famous Augustians Football Club where he stayed for five years. Biri was pivotal to the team’s dominance of football at the time. In 1970 Biri left The Gambia to join Derby county a first division team in the UK .He returned to The Gambia in 1970 and joined Wallidan a team he actually showed a lot of love for and dedication. In 1972, he left for Denmark to play for B 1901, a first division team in that country. In 1973 he was transferred to the famous Spanish team Sevilla, a team that also fielded famous players like Diego Maradona. Alhaji Biri Njie was honoured by his team Sevilla as one of the greatest players in the world and on that occasion Diego Maradona himself took the privilege to have his picture taken with the greatest player that has ever played for Sevilla. After a five-year sojourn in Spain, Biri went to Belgium to play for Aderlect, a first division team. In 1980 Biri returned to Denmark to play for Herfolge. In 1981 Biri returned home to continue his incredible career in soccer. Biri has always assisted national coaches and clubs and had himself led the National Squad on many occasions on international competitions.
Biri played for the national team from 1963 to 1987, a
record in the history of soccer in this country. In 1985 he was
decorated MRG and in 1994 he became Deputy Mayor of Banjul. Biri is an
inspiration to all Gambians in particular to the young generation of
rising stars.
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What’s
Gambian football without a mention of the all-time great Alhagie Njie
aka Biri Biri? Who else can overshadow the monumental achievements of
Biri Biri in Gambian football? He’ll go down in the history of Gambian
football as the greatest football talent this country has ever produced.
Just as no footballer can outshine King Pele, so no Gambian footballer
can eclipse Biri Biri; they can only be like him. Great talents like
Biri Biri are usually the benchmark for others to follow.