With Liverpool on the verge of what could potentially be a historic season, a Nigerian separatist and Reds supporter in detention on charges of treason has been allowed to watch the club’s matches by a judge who also happens to be a fan.
Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the the banned Indigenous People of Biafra (Ipob) group, has been in detention since last year on charges of treason for allegedly campaigning for the independence of south-east Nigeria, which he refers to as Biafra.
While Kanu denies the charges, he has not been released on bail, and his privileges in detention did not extend to watching football games live, until Wednesday.
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Appearing in court for a bail hearing that resulted in rejection, Kanu enjoyed some sort of a victory as the judge ordered that he be allowed to watch Liverpool’s matches henceforth.
Bizarrely, however, neither the judge, nor Kanu knew of each other’s allegiances to Liverpool, which came to light during the bail hearing.
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Possibly referring to a tweet where Kanu is seen wearing an Atletico Madrid jacket, Justice Binta Nyako joked that she was a Liverpool fan.
The judge then turned to Kanu’s lawyer, Mike Ozekhome, asking him whether was a Reds fan. Ozekhome replied in the positive, following which Justice Nyako turned to Kanu.
“My team is Liverpool even from age of seven,” said Kanu, standing upright on the dock, when quizzed about his football allegiance.
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Although neither judge nor defendant knew of each other’s love for Liverpool, Justice Nyako immediately ordered the prison representative to allow Kanu watch the UEFA Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid on Saturday, as if bound by the club’s iconic ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ anthem.
She also said that she would sign an order allowing Kanu to watch all Liverpool matches live henceforth, and the 54-year-old could have an opportunity to catch the Reds’ final Premier League game against Wolves on Sunday.
Although Kanu may have missed much of the action over the course of the season, he could potentially witness a historic quadruple: Liverpool are currently a point behind Manchester City with one Premier League game to play, and play Real Madrid in the Champions League in the final game of a season that could go down in history as the club’s greatest.