Nwankwo Obiora (born 12 July 1991) is a Nigerian footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Portuguese club Chaves.
Personal information | |||||||||||||
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Full name | Nwankwo Obiora[1] | ||||||||||||
Date of birth | (1991-07-12) 12 July 1991 (age 31) | ||||||||||||
Place of birth | Kaduna, Nigeria | ||||||||||||
Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||||||||||||
Position(s) | Defensive midfielder | ||||||||||||
Club information | |||||||||||||
Current team | Chaves | ||||||||||||
Number | 40 | ||||||||||||
Youth career | |||||||||||||
2006–2010 | ECO | ||||||||||||
2006–2008 | → Heartland | ||||||||||||
2008–2009 | → Wikki Tourists | ||||||||||||
2009–2010 | → Real Murcia | ||||||||||||
Senior career* | |||||||||||||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||
2010–2011 | Inter Milan | 4 | (0) | ||||||||||
2011–2013 | Parma | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||
2012 | → Gubbio (loan) | 18 | (2) | ||||||||||
2012–2013 | → Padova (loan) | 14 | (0) | ||||||||||
2013 | → CFR Cluj (loan) | 7 | (0) | ||||||||||
2013–2014 | CFR Cluj | 11 | (0) | ||||||||||
2014 | Córdoba | 6 | (0) | ||||||||||
2014–2016 | Académica de Coimbra | 38 | (1) | ||||||||||
2016–2018 | Levadiakos | 16 | (1) | ||||||||||
2018–2020 | Boavista | 38 | (3) | ||||||||||
2021– | Chaves | 5 | (0) | ||||||||||
National team‡ | |||||||||||||
2009 | Nigeria U-20 | 4 | (1) | ||||||||||
2011 | Nigeria U-23 | 4 | (0) | ||||||||||
2012– | Nigeria | 8 | (0) | ||||||||||
Honours
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*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19 September 2021 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 21 June 2013 |
Obiora began his career with Lagos based club ECO FC,[2] before he signed for Heartland. He was loaned to Wikki Tourists in July 2008.[3]
He then left Heartland to sign a contract with Real Murcia on 11 May 2009[4] that ran through 30 June 2010.[5]
On 28 November 2009 it was announced that Internazionale signed Obiora from Eco FC.[6] At first the youngster was a part of Inter's primavera squad managed by Fulvio Pea.[7] Obiora made his first-team debut in a UEFA Champions League match against Tottenham in London, coming on as a substitute for the injured Sulley Muntari in the 53rd minute.
After not making an impact at the Milan club, Nwankwo Obiora moved to Parma on 31 January 2011 in a co-ownership deal for €300,000.[8] The deal was renewed in June 2011[8][9] and again in June 2012. He was loaned to Calcio Padova in 2012–13 season. Parma subsidized Padova for €200,000 in terms of premi di valorizzazione.[10]
On 6 February 2013, Romanian champions CFR Cluj announced that they brought the midfielder on a temporary basis, with a buyout clause to make the move permanent in the summer.[11] In June 2013 Parma also purchased the remain 50% registration rights of Nwankwo from Inter (as part of the return of Galimberti and Mella to Inter),[nb 1][10] in order to re-sell the registration rights to Cluj for free.[12]
On 23 July 2014, after a small stint with Córdoba in Segunda División, Obiora signed a three-year deal with Primeira Liga side Académica de Coimbra.[13] He made his debut in a 1–1 home draw against Sporting CP. Obiora scored his first goal for Académica on 1 November, in a 1–1 draw against Moreirense.
On 15 September 2016, Levadiakos officially announced the signing of Nwankwo.[14]
He signed for Boavista for the 2018–19 season. In March 2019 he talked about how injuries had affected his earlier career.[15]
He was a member of the Nigeria U-20 squad which took part at the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Egypt, the 2009 WAFU U-20 Championship,[16] and the 2009 African Youth Championship in Rwanda.[17]
He was called up to Nigeria's 23-man squad for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations.[18]
Internazionale
Nigeria
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G.D. Chaves – current squad | |
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Nigeria squad – 2013 Africa Cup of Nations winners (3rd title) | ||
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