Joseph Agbeko: Emmanuel Tagoe is a special fighter
Former International Boxing Federation (IBF) bantamweight champion, Joseph ‘King Kong’ Agbeko, has described Emmanuel ‘Gameboy’ Tagoe as a ‘special fighter’ ahead of his world title eliminator against undefeated Ryan Garcia on April 9.
Agbeko told the Graphic Sports that Tagoe had a fighting style which could trouble any opponent in the ring and believed that would be crucial in the biggest bout of his career.
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Tagoe has signed to fight Garcia for a shot at unified champion, George Kambosos Jnr’s WBO, IBF and WBA titles if he beats the American in Texas.
“I have hope in Gameboy against Garcia because his fighting style is special and that can trouble anybody in the ring.
“If you watch him carefully, you might think he is not doing anything in the ring but that style confuses his opponents and he gets his chance to box around,” noted Agbeko.
Tagoe has pitched camp in Florida after over two weeks of intensive training in Ghana under experienced trainer Lawrence Carl Lokko.
The Ghanaian is making a return to the ring after 15 months since earning a majority decision victory over Mason Menard in November 2020.
Coincidentally, Garcia will also be making a return to the ring for the first time since January 2021 when he stopped Luke Campbell in seven rounds after going down in the second round.
The American boxer is regarded as one of the best lightweights in the world now and is ,therefore, expected to give his Ghanaian counterpart his toughest career contest.
Garcia has swapped his long-time trainer, Eddy Reynoso, for Joe Goosen ahead of the Tagoe bout, with many seeing that as a wrong move for the hard-hitting boxer.
When asked if Garcia’s new trainer, Goosen, could mastermind a big win over Tagoe, the Ghanaian said he was ready to shock the world with a career-defining victory.
“I am focused on winning no matter who trains him, but I know his new trainer and I don’t see the change as something that will affect me.
“I am still prepared to shock the world with a big win so I can get a shot at the world title before the year ends,” Tagoe told the Graphic Sports in a separate interview.