The wasps are returning, breaking through the barriers as easily as he is ... Meet Paolo Odogwu

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Can I publish this on my Instagram? ‘asks Paolo Odogwu as he poses for photos in the hip, graffiti-marked back streets of Birmingham.

Its audience is growing rapidly. It gained 1,000 followers in a single evening after the Wasps’ victory over Bath last week.

So who is Paolo Odogwu? The rising Premiership star, who was born in Coventry, idolized former Nigerian soccer player Jay-Jay Okocha and eats pasta on Christmas Day.

Paolo Odogwu is the hot-stepper of the wasps, whose online fan base is growing rapidly

Odogwu was born in Coventry, is the soccer player Jay-Jay Okocha and eats pasta at Christmas

“A bit like a cultural mash-up,” smiles the English, Nigerian and Italian hot-stepper.

The nationality of Odogwu is of particular interest as he will be asked in the coming days to make a decision about which country he wishes to represent in the Six Nations.

“I was born here, my father is half Nigerian, half Italian and my mother is fully Nigerian,” he says. “I like to watch Nigerian football. I love the whole vibe. Until I went to secondary school, it was all football. Nobody in my family knew anything about rugby. The first rugby game they saw was when I played in school … as a prop!

“One of my idols was Jay-Jay Okocha. He had so much skill and flair and I just thought “I want to be like him”. I like the idea of having my own style and I try to bring that into myself. I don’t want to play like everyone else … I just want me to be me. ‘

23-year-old Odogwu has stamped his identity throughout the Premiership. Before moving on to his impressive rugby credentials, he recounts his life away from the rugby pitch: school days, African music and his parents’ upbringing.

“My parents had pretty good backgrounds in Nigeria,” he says. “My father’s father is a doctor and my mother’s father was a corporate lawyer. There is a massive wealth gap there, with some people living on the street with private gates and armed security and others five minutes down the street. Fortunately, my parents grew up well educated and instilled that into me.

The 23-year-old Odogwu has shaped his identity throughout the Premiership in recent months

“When we grew up we went to Italy more than to Nigeria. It’s obviously easier to achieve. We went to Bologna every year to see my father’s family. We eat a lot of Italian food. We have a massive seven-layer lasagna for the first course on Christmas Day! ‘

Odogwu is heavily invested in its roots. Last year he took part in the Black Lives Matter marches and is a vocal fighter on social media. He takes pride in his looks. On the pitch, he stands out with flashing red dreadlocks and personalized boots with designs like BLM and NHS. For his photo shoot on fashionable Gibb Street, he wears a tailored leather jacket and pants with a tie-dye effect.

“When all of this happened to George Floyd, I decided to share my own story,” says Odogwu, who has had his own experience with racial prejudice. “I like to get dressed a little out there. It’s my own style. I’m confident in myself, that’s why I like to express that in my clothes, my boots, my hair.

“I customize all of these things with hand-painted superhero designs, wrestlers or whoever. When I was younger I used a small sharpie pen but now I use real color. You don’t have a chance to reflect your personality in rugby, so I like to do that with my boots. ‘

It’s not just his fashion and political statements that have caught the attention of international coaches. As an attacking force, Odogwu has taken more meters and fault-free breaks this season than anyone else in the league.

His career stalled when he was fired from Leicester and given limited opportunities by Sale before Wasps enrolled him in 2019 and recently relocated his position from the wing to the center.