Michael Kayode: Life With a Smile | OneFootball

“Whatever happens, bad or good, I try and face life with a smile and a positive attitude – and I never give up.”

A very mature outlook on life for someone so young, yet a look at Michael Kayode’s short but eventful football career so far goes a long way to explaining his wise and infectious personality.

An international tournament winner, two-time European competition finalist and a domestic trophy winner (more on both of those later) – not bad going for someone who is three months shy of his 21st birthday.

Given his omnipresent smile gets even bigger when the first of those achievements is mentioned, it makes sense to start by taking you back to 16 July 2023.

On that day, the now Brentford full-back – who joined on loan from Fiorentina in January with a club option to make the deal permanent in the summer - was named in the Italy starting XI for the UEFA European Under-19 Championship final against Portugal in Malta.

19 minutes into the game, Kayode stormed in at the back post to meet Luis Hasa’s cross and head in the only goal of the match.

“It was the best experience of my life,” Kayode beams.

“I remember everything. When my team-mate crossed the ball, I headed it and I didn’t see where the ball was going. When I stood up, the ball was in and we could celebrate.

“It’s a fantastic feeling because you feel like the whole country is behind you. You feel responsible and in charge of the destiny of the country. It’s definitely an emotional feeling and one I want to have again.

“It’s not easy to carry the expectation of the whole country on your shoulders but you know that you are representing the country which makes it easier.

“It’s a great honour, but it’s not easy, especially for a country like Italy.

“I’ve obviously experienced amazing emotions and feelings with the U19s.

“I cannot even imagine what it would mean to win something with the senior national team. It’s something I’m hoping and aiming for.”

Lifting the trophy was made all the sweeter given the challenging journey the team had been on to even reach the competition.

“It was great also because the road to get there was really tough,” Kayode continues.

“In the first qualification stage, we finished third [behind Poland and Estonia on goal difference] and were ‘lucky losers’ so we stayed in the tournament.

“The mood wasn’t the best, and we were then put in a hard group against Germany, Belgium and Slovenia.

“We won against Germany and Belgium and drew against Slovenia, so we then arrived in Malta without any fear.”

Born in northern Italy to Nigerian parents, Kayode grew up in Borgomanero, a small commune in the province of Novara with a population of around 21,300 people.

Situated just under 70 miles north-east of Turin and 45 miles north-west of Milan, it was in the former city that he began his football education with European giants Juventus.

A lot of the sacrifices professional footballers made and continue to make go unseen, with Kayode’s beginning at the age of just six.

“Italy is full of provincial towns and it’s great to grow up in one. You go to school and grow up together with your friends," he says.

“I started playing football when I was four and started training when I was six. I didn’t move to Turin.

“I had to travel up and down to Turin for seven years which could have put a strain on my friendships, but I’m still in touch with all of my friends from Borgomonero.

“It was so hard because I was only six. I started school at 8am, I finished at 1-2pm. At 3pm, I’d get the bus from Borgomanero and arrive to the training ground at 5pm.

“I’d have training until 6.30pm and then at 8pm, I’d get the bus back to Borgomanero and arrive home at 10pm or even 11pm - that was every day for seven years.

“When you’re a child, you want to chill and enjoy time with your friends and have fun, but when you start at a club like that, that’s when your work begins.”

A young player at Juventus – particularly an up-and-coming defender with the Old Lady - didn’t have to look far for inspiration.

Kayode was following in the footsteps of Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci, the latter of whom he walked out with as a mascot for a UEFA Champions League quarter-final against Bayern Munich.

In 2018, he was lucky enough to be in the stands at Allianz Stadium to witness an opposition player – none other than Cristiano Ronaldo – score one of the greatest goals in the prestigious competition’s history for Real Madrid.

“It was incredible [training at Juventus].

“They had 12 pitches at the training ground, astro-turf, big buildings, big coaches and big players.

“I remember watching the Champions League in the stadium. I was in the stadium when [Cristiano] Ronaldo scored the bicycle kick [in a 3-0 win for Real Madrid].

“In 2013, I was a mascot and walked out with Bonucci against Bayern Munich. I was only eight and it was amazing.”

Having initially joined Gozzano on loan from Juventus, Kayode moved to the then Serie D club on a permanent basis and, at the age of 16, got his first taste of senior football.

After being on the bench for the first three games of the season, he more than took his chance across the remainder of the campaign, providing two goals and two assists across 34 appearances.

Kayode and Gozzano celebrated the 2020/21 Serie D title, having finished seven points ahead of Castellanzese.

A promotion to the third tier of Italian football was not to follow, however, with financial issues at the club leading to all players being released from their contracts.

“They took me into the first team when I was 16 years old,” Kayode continues. “That was my first time in a first team.

“I was on the bench for three matches and then I made my debut in the fourth game. After that, I played all of the games, 34 games and won the championship which should have taken us into Serie C, the third division.

“We didn’t get promoted to Serie C and all of the players were released. The issue was debt. It was a terrible blow to be honest because of all of the efforts we had put in to get promoted.”

Despite that disappointment, Kayode – citing his life mantra – took the positives from his experience.

“It was incredible because in that division, the other players were workers who were playing to make ends meet and support their families, so it was a completely different perspective compared to me who was young and free,” he says.

“I had a chance when I was only 16 to try and think like them, be more grown up and see things from their perspective and point of view. It was an important growing up moment for me.”

Kayode had done enough in his title-winning year at Gozzano to attract the attention of Fiorentina.

The move represented a chance to develop at one of Italy’s best academies and, despite returning to youth football from the senior game, he, as ever, took the positives.

“At Gozzano, I was playing with grown-up men, but it was semi-professional level,” Kayode explains.

“With the Fiorentina Primavera [U19s] youth team, I was playing with young men who were maybe a couple of years older than me. The level was a step up rather than a step back.

“In the first year, we won the Coppa Italia [Primavera] and Supercoppa [Primavera]. In the next year, I won the Supercoppa [Primavera] again but lost two finals – the Coppa Italia and the Championship.”

In August 2023, one of Kayode’s dreams was realised as he made his Serie A debut as a late substitute in a 4-1 win at Genoa.

That was to be the first of 26 appearances in what was a breakout 2023/24 season, with an injury to right-back Dodô presenting him with an opportunity for regular game time.

“It was a great relationship, and we never had any issues with each other despite playing in the same position,” Kayode interjects.

“I have an incredible relationship with Dodô. I grew up watching him to see what he was doing and was asking him for a lot of advice and tips. He was really generous with his time, too.

“I’ve only got nice things to say about him. He’s always been so generous and kind.”

Only six players managed more minutes for Fiorentina than Kayode that term, with his total of 2,058 being the highest across Serie A for U20 players – and fourth for those U21.

Amongst his team-mates, he won the second-most tackles (30), including the most in the offensive third (11).

He also ranked third for shots blocked (12), and fourth for both interceptions (18) and clearances (46).

Across the 2022/23 and 2023/24 seasons, Fiorentina also excelled in European competition, reaching back-to-back UEFA Conference League finals.

In the first, La Viola lost 2-1 to West Ham; Jarrod Bowen scoring a dramatic late winner for David Moyes’ side in Prague.

Less than 12 months later, Kayode was an unused substitute as the side suffered more late heartbreak, with Olympiacos’s Ayoub El-Kaabi netting the only goal of the game on 116 minutes when the final looked destined to be decided on penalties.

The full-back, who featured six times in the latter Conference League campaign, learnt plenty of lessons from the experience.

“I think people underestimate the importance of the Conference League because you don’t have super famous teams like Manchester United and Real Madrid, but it’s a very good competition,” says Kayode.

“It is a harrowing experience to lose twice in a row but the experience of getting there is great.

“The experience of losing is horrible. You’re disappointing the fans and hurting your personal pride.

“Having the chance to be involved in those two finals is something I really treasure, though, and is one of the best feelings in my life.

“Losing is horrible, but it gives you the motivation to try and win again. It makes you become more mentally resilient and strong.”

He adds: “Winning a trophy is the best feeling you can have, and once you have it, you want to replicate it again.

“With football being a team sport rather than an individual sport, it gives you that team spirit and the feeling as a team is much more powerful.

“If you’re really a great group and together as a team, aiming for the same goals and pulling in the right direction, no prima donnas, no protagonists; that’s the key to winning, or to getting into finals and having the best shot at winning something.

“Being together as a group is so important.”

Togetherness is, of course, a core value for the club he now plies his trade, Brentford.

But it isn’t just his character that aligns with the west Londoners, as his aforementioned 2023/24 campaign illustrates.

Across his 26 Serie A appearances, he also ranked second and fourth respectively amongst his Fiorentina colleagues for crosses (66) and touches in the attacking third (371).

That offensive output is something that Bees fans have been able to witness first hand, too, with his overlapping run and delicate cross leading to the side's equalising goal against Arsenal at Emirates Stadium in April.

“I’ve wanted to play in the Premier League since I was a child,” Kayode concludes.

“I started in the Primavera [at Fiorentina] with Alberto Aquilani, who played in the Premier League with Liverpool. I spoke with him a lot about how the Premier League is and he told me to go.

“Before I came here, I watched a lot of games and I think, for my characteristics, Brentford is one of the best places to be.

“I love attacking as a full-back. I speak with Thomas [Frank] a lot. He prepared a lot of videos of training and tips so I could improve. I’m very happy with the care he has given me.

“Of course, I’ve always wanted to play in the Premier League, and I thought Brentford was the best place to do that.”