Ethiopian international center back Walid Atta insisted he is contemplating to leave Ankara side Gençlebirliği after the New Year. The defender joined the Winds of Ankara in a 3 years deal on April 2015 from Allsvenskan side BK Häcken. Walid managed to appear only 4 times this season.
Walid Atta exclusively told Soccer Ethiopia he is not happy at the Turkish club. “I have been in Ankara for the last 6 months. It was difficult at the beginning to adapt the food, culture, football and the environment. We started league in poor form. We are struggling. I have had few chances to show my worth there. However, in the last couple of months things are not going the way I planned,” said Atta.
Atta, 29, furthermore stated he didn’t get explanation from the coach for not being peaked up in the starting lineup. “The club changed the coach (Stuart Baxter) barley after 2 games. The new coach (Mehmet Özdilek) previously worked in the team. He put me on the bench without any explanation. So, I will be out looking for a new club in the forthcoming January.”
Atta, who has 5 caps under his belt for the Ethiopian national team, added he hopes Walias will qualify for the African Cup of Nation. “I wish to help Ethiopia to qualify for African Cup of Nation. I was a bit disappointed with the draw against Seychelles. I know the fans are asking a lot thus there will be a huge pressure but I believe the lads will do whatever it takes to satisfy the fans. We will see what will happen next. I am looking forward to come back again and play.”
The Saudi born player was a center of media attention after he scored an audacious Rabona goal in a training field. The video went viral and Atta received a lot of encouraging messages from all over the world. “I have not thought that it would go viral. I scored that Rabona goal in a second attempt, the first one went wide. To be honest with you it was a nice goal. I first put the video on Instagram and afterwards many people happened to watch it. It was surprising to see people contacting me from the United States, Brazil and some other countries just because of the goal.”
