How a publicity signing became a Wycombe legend
After Adebayo Akinfenwa signed off his time at AFC Wimbledon with a penalty at Wembley to seal promotion, he gave a memorable post-match interview. Knowing he was due to be released by the Dons, he turned to the camera and told any prospective managers to ‘Hit me on WhatsApp’, a comment that perfectly reflected his social media presence. His formidable size had lead him to the distinction of being the strongest footballer in the world. This came from the computer game FIFA and, combined with his social media profile (which escalated after he scored against his boyhood club Liverpool in January 2015), turned a lower league journeyman into something of a celebrity.
Two months after the aforementioned interview at Wembley and Wycombe Wanderers were hosting a kit launch one Sunday afternoon. The event was drawing to a close, when head of media Matt Cecil announced there was one further reveal. He started a round of applause before pulling back the curtain to reveal the unmistakable figure of Akinfenwa, resplendent in the new kit.
There were those that derided this as nothing more than a publicity stunt, a way of boosting Wycombe’s social media profile and adding a few extra to the gate by employing a well-known figure from the lower leagues. Such claims were always the stuff of nonsense. A manager like Gareth Ainsworth who is so protective of his playing budget and is known to use his own money to buy equipment and collect balls after training, was hardly going to waste wages on a PR exercise. Yet equally there were those who questioned the signing. It was true that Wycombe had laboured for goals towards the end of the 2015-16 season, but quite how a 34-year-old journeyman with just six league goals in that aforementioned campaign would address that issue was something of a mystery.
Less than four years later and Akinfenwa has his place cemented as an Adams Park legend. He has been Wanderers top-scorer for three seasons running and his effort at Doncaster Rovers at the end of February meant he surpassed Nathan Tyson to become Wycombe’s all-time leading goalscorer in their 27-year EFL history. If it was a PR stunt, it was an absolutely inspired one. And as for being written off? This was hardly something that was going to stall a man who was told at a young age that he was too big to play football.
Ainsworth was asked recently about the signing of Akinfenwa and he alluded to the fact that whenever Wycombe fast the man they call ‘The Beast’, the defence did a lot of work to keep him quiet both before and during games. If Wycombe could utilise those qualities and the opposition didn’t do their homework, it could reap rewards. While some have criticised Ainsworth’s direct approach at times, it was shrewd management – sign a player, play to his strengths and sit back and watch the goals roll in.
Akinfenwa’s qualities are formidable. His strength in the air has been attributed in some areas to his bulk and the fact that the defenders can’t get near him. It’s obviously not that simple – he can read the game brilliantly and his hold up play is exceptional. He provides almost as many assists as he does goals. When Scott Kashket arrived at Wycombe, he and Akinfenwa formed a ‘little n large’ duo that proved effective, while the on-going combination of Joe Jacobson’s left foot and Akinfenwa’s head is a tried and tested method that just keeps working. Lesser seen by the wider footballing world is the defensive attributes he brings to the team, for it is just as familiar a site to see him heading clear from an opposition corner as trying to score from a Wycombe one.
Yet for all the records and attributes he brings to the team, there is something of a refreshing humility to the man. When he was won ‘Player’s Player’ of the season, he has promptly requested all his teammates join him on stage for the photo, acknowledging that football is very much a team game. When he broke the EFL record he tweeted was honoured but that he ‘did not do it by himself’.
Aside from his quality and humility though, his personality is something that resonates and is in no doubt a key factor in his celebrity status. He is often mocked by opposition fans for his size with the chant ‘Akinfenwa, Your tits are offside!’ reverberating from the away end at Adams Park. Every. Single. Week. Wycombe matchday commentator Phil Catchpole once claimed that one day, someone will come up with an original chant about the big man, but AKinfenwa doesn’t seem to mind the repetitiveness. In many ways this reflects his status – people know who he is. He stated in his autobiography that he laughed the first time he heard the chant and even admires the Portsmouth fans, for it was they who came up with it. And when it is sung, he just smiles and waves at the fans. Chants of ‘You Fat Bastard!’ usually result in a rub of the stomach while the Bolton fans who sang ‘Get your tits out for the lads!’ resulted in a huge cheer when Akinfenwa promptly lifted his shirt. Despite these regular jeers, you never see Akinfenwa cupping his ears or taunting the opposition when he inevitably scores, and should those self-same supporters then ask for an autograph or a picture afterwards, you can bet your bottom dollar Akinfenwa will be glad to give them one.
His goals have often been marked by more memorable celebrations which have included dabbing, bench-pressing Luke O’Nien, a Santa dance, copying The Rock’s signature wrestling move and referencing the likes of Toy Story and the Floyd Mayweather v Conor McGregor boxing match (he did even, jokingly, offer David Haye a fight).
And his attitude towards criticism stretches into his social media profile too. In an exciting 3-3 draw at Plymouth on Boxing Day 2016 Akinfenwa set up the first goal, hit the post, scored the second and played a key role in a 90th-minute equaliser. This is not a bad afternoon’s work for any forward, but it prompted one Argyle fan to Tweet ‘Watching @daRealAkinfenwa play football for @wwfcofficial gives me hope…the man has 0% footballing ability!’ Akinfenwa’s reply may have been tongue in cheek, but it was a thing of brilliance that simply read ‘I’m glad I give u hope’.
For all the goalscoring exploits, assists, humble personality, charisma and the publicity he has undeniably brought to Wycombe, it would be wrong to label him as a flawless character. He is human after all. He turned up late for a game against Cheltenham in 2017 and was promptly dropped to the bench, and he has found himself in trouble on more than one occasion on the pitch. In his first appearance in a Wycombe shirt, a friendly in France, he was sent off for his reaction to a foul on fellow forward Dayle Southwell, and he was heavily involved in the mass brawl that unfolded at the end of Wycombe’s 1-1 home draw with Sunderland last season. At Oxford this season he was already on a booking when he reacted angrily to a foul on Kashket. He picked up a second yellow card with Wycombe trailing 1-0 and still an hour of the game to go. All these incidents do in part paint a picture of a man who wants to stand up for his teammates, but at the Kassam Stadium in particular, he really should have kept his head down. And there are those who claim he regularly fouls defenders, whereas Wycombe fans will argue that he is often punished due to his size. The truth is most likely somewhere in between, but there is no denying his shirt is pulled on a regular basis with only a handful of them ever punished. He manages to curb his frustration on those occasions for sure.
And there’s also the Superbowl. Akinfenwa appears to have some sort of agreement in his contract that allows him to travel to the American football showpiece every season as part of his media commitments. His absence was noticeable during a drab 0-0 with Bradford City last season and Wycombe’s toothless 2-0 defeat at Milton Keynes this year with fans arguing that such an agreement shouldn’t be allowed. It’s ironic really – were he not so vital to Wycombe it wouldn’t matter so much. Yet this is an example of the club being accommodating to its players – Marcus Bean didn’t train on Mondays during his last season to pursue other activities. Would it have helped were Akinfenwa available for those games? Yes. But missing one game a season is hardly significant, and if it allows him to stay and score with the frequency he has shown, it is a price worth paying. It also helps raise his profile prompting more interest in Wycombe Wanderers – two fans recently travelled all the way from Mexico to South Bucks, citing Akinfenwa as a key reason for picking the Chairboys as a team to support.
For when all is said and done, what Akinfenwa has brought to Wycombe, in so many ways, has seen him cement his place in Wycombe folklore and record books.
What does the future hold? His contract expires at the end of the year and time waits for no man, but there may well be more to come from a man who has continually broken the mould and pushed the boundaries of what may seem possible.
Whenever he does depart, he will leave a hole that will be very hard to fill both on and off the pitch, yet he will depart as an Adams Park legend with the facts and figures to prove it.
Not bad for a PR stunt with 0% footballing ability.
words Phil Slatter, D3D4 Wycombe Wanderers correspondent