Former Nigerian international Anthony Ujah has announced his retirement from professional football at the age of 34. The striker made the decision public via an Instagram post earlier today, expressing gratitude for his journey and the support of his family, coaches, and teammates.
Tag: Anthony Ujah
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Should Eagles abandon match in protest against racism?
Anthony Uja has called on Super Eagles of Nigeria to walk away in case of any racial abuse in Russia.
The Nigerian national football team will feature in its sixth World Cup appearance in Russia, with fixtures to play against Croatia, Iceland and Argentina in Group D.
Speaking on radio, the Nigeria international and German Bundesliga Mainz 05 player said the World Cup is a big stage where racism should not be tolerated.
The former Warri Wolves’ player, who last season, was at the centre of a racial abuse in his Europe club side, said he would expect Nigeria and other World Cup-bound countries, to take a tough stance against racism at this year’s FIFA World Cup in Russia.
‘There’s no bigger statement than to walk off the pitch in protest against racism. No World Cup game has ended abruptly, but with the global attention if players do it; to protest racism I will support it.’
‘I do not advocate it and I don’t think FIFA will support it, but Players must do something about it. Racism may live beyond our time but we need to make a strong statement,’ he said.
Meanwhile, Super Eagles’ defender, William Troost-Ekong has expressed a similar opinion to protest against racial abuse, stating that players should be able to express their thoughts on racism by abandoning any match.
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Ujah missing Liaoning Whowin season opener
As the new season of the Chinese Super League kicked off Friday, facts have now emerged that the CSL pumped in a whooping
£320m, about N123billion (One hundred and twenty three billion naira) on transfers.
The transfer included but not limited to that of Nigerian internationals John Obi Mikel, Odion Ighalo, Brown Ideye, and Anthony Ujah among others. Other players whose transfers helped to swell the sum include Argentine international Carlos Tevez and Oscar.
The reason for pumping in so much money according to the CSL is not only to lift the standard of the game in the country but also attract more fans to the stadium.
Despite the huge amount pumped in just before the close of transfer window and beginning of the season, the new season kicked off with Anthony Ujah’s Lianoning Whowin taking on Guizhou Zhicheng Friday at the Guizhou Zhicheng’s 52,888-seater capacity stadium with the supporters completely missing. The match was played in a near empty stadium despite the hype and fanfare ahead of the opening match.
Meanwhile Nigerian international Anthony Ujah was not listed in the match that ended in a 1-1 draw.
Hosts Guizhou Zhicheng maintained 64% possession and had been tipped to emerge victorious, but Lianoning Whowin made their
36% possession count converting a 14th minute penalty before the hosts managed to equalise in the 54th minute via a penalty.
There are indications however that the fans may begin to head for the stadium as subsequent games billed for Saturday and
Sunday take the centre stage. Super Eagles captain who now doubles as captain of his new Chinese club Tianjin Teda will lead his teammates out against Shandong Luneng on Saturday, but Obafemi Martins will have to wait till Sunday when he and teammate Carlos Tevez file out against visiting Jiangsu Suning.
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Ujah suffers rib injury
Super Eagles striker, Anthony Ujah, is a major doubt for Werder Bremen’s Bundesliga clash against FC Augsburg on Sunday.
The forward picked up a rib injury at Wednesday’s training session after he was challenged by Lukas Fröde and Assani Lukimya, allnigeriasoccer.com reports.
The ex-Warri Wolves star has been Werder Bremen’s standout player in the first stanza of the league, scoring five goals from 11 matches.
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Ibrahim, Ujah in starting XI for Niger clash
Super Eagles coach, Sunday Oliseh, has made six changes in the squad that started Saturday’s African Nations Cup qualifier in Tanzania for Tuesday’s friendly against Niger.
FC Taraba star, Usman Mohammed, Chima Akas, Rabiu Ibrahim, Sylvester Igbonu, Anthony Ujah and Godfrey Oboabona will be in the starting XI for the encounter slated for Port Harcourt.
Olympic Team midfielder Usman will be making his Eagles debut five years after he was discovered playing on the dusty streets of Sokoto with no shoes, africanFootball.com reports.
Igbonu and Ujah were substitutes in Tanzania.
Oliseh has kept faith with Wolves of England goalkeeper, Carl Ikeme, who impressed on his debut in Dar es Salaam.
Werder Bremen’s Ujah has been picked to lead the attack ahead of Emmanuel Emenike.
The starting XI:
Carl Ikeme – Solomon Kwambe, Chima Akas, Godfrey Oboabona, Kenneth Omeruo – Obiora Nwankwo, Usman Mohammed, Rabiu Ibrahim, Sylvester Igbonu, Anthony Ujah, Ahmed Musa
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Ujah cherishes scoring against Neuer
Nigeria striker Anthony Ujah has said he will always cherish scoring past Bayern Munich’s Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer “for the rest of his life”.
Ujah out-jumped the Bayern defence to head past Neuer on the stroke of halftime to put Cologne back in the game at 2-1 down before ultimately losing 4-1 to the Bundesliga leaders on Friday.
It was his eighth Bundesliga goal this season and his 32nd in the Cologne shirt since joining from Mainz in 2012.
But scoring past Neuer, the world goalkeeper of 2014, was a moment the Nigeria international will never forget.
“It’s a great feeling. Scoring against Manuel Neuer is something any striker would be proud of at the moment,” said the 24-year-old Ujah.
“It was a really, really, really proud moment that I will cherish for the rest of my life.”
Only a stunning save from Neuer denied Ujah a second goal in the second-half which underlined the Germany star’s status as the world’s best.
“It just shows why he is the No 1 and why he is at the level he is right now,” said Ujah with Cologne winless in their last five games.
“I thought it was almost in, but he showed why he’s the best.
“I should be proud of being there at the right moment because that’s one of the things I’m trying to work on improving.
“I know it didn’t go in, but it’s something I can build on and I hope will give me confidence to continue helping my team to stay in the league.”
The defeat leaves Cologne 13th in the Bundesliga just a few points from the bottom three, but Ujah said he is ready for the relegation battle.
“We still have some big teams to play against like Schalke and Wolfsburg,” he said.
“We know how tight it is, but the mood isn’t too low after losing to Bayern, so we have to keep our heads up and continue fighting.”
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I’m not a selfish striker — Ujah
Out of favour Eagles’ striker and FC Köln of Germany player, Anthony Ujah has revealed that he has not set a goals target for himself this season, with 6 goals in as many appearances in the German Bundesliga this season, so far.
Speaking with www.footballlive.ng Ujah said the team’s clean bill of health and getting good results remains his top priority.
” I never have a target for goals. I go into every game to give my best, so when I’m not scoring goals I’m helping the team achieve victory.”
” I know as a striker it’s expected of me to score and so far we’ve not started badly. I wouldn’t want to be selfish about opportunities because that could hurt the team.
” In other words the team comes first, so survival in the Bundesliga is key, the number of goals I score becomes an after thought.”
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Cologne match winner thrilled Ujah
NIGERIA striker Anthony Ujah has said he was delighted to score the match winner for German Bundesliga side Cologne against Werder Bremen.
Cologne won 1-0 at Bremen on Friday night and are now ninth on the table with 12 points from nine games.
Ujah came off the bench in the 58th minute to replace Daniel Halfar and scored a minute later, his second goal of the season in the Bundesliga.
“I’m really happy to have been able to score the winning goal after coming off the bench,” the striker told the Bundesliga official website.
“The team needed a spark and I was happy to oblige. I don’t have any words. I came off the bench with one thought in my head: ‘Goal!’. I was fortunately able to make the most of the opportunity.”
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Ujah’s brace shoots Köln to the top
Nigerian striker, Anthony Ujah bagged a brace as he inspired Köln to a 3-2 win over Fortuna Düsseldorf in the 2. Bundesliga (Germany’s second division) on Sunday.
Ujah who was a member of the Nigerian squad at the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil opened the scoring on the half hour with a powerful header off a Patrick Helmes cross.
The 23-year-old thought he had doubled his account in the 56th minute, but the referee chalked off his strike for offside.
Ujah was to enjoy the last laugh though in the 75th minute as he netted the winner via a laser-like strike into the far corner to give Die Geißböcke (the Billy Goats) maximum points over their bitter rivals.
His impressive performance did not go unnoticed as he was duly selected as man-of-the-match. He subsequently took to Twitter to voice his delight at the win and his accomplishments on a personal level.
“What a Derby. I am very very happy. I wish everyone a Merry Christmas and all the best for 2014. FC,” he tweeted to his 6,738 followers via @ujah_13, moments after the game.
The former FSV Mainz attacker, who has earned five senior caps for Nigeria, has now scored seven league goals this season.
Sunday’s win at the ESPRIT Arena cemented Köln’s place at the top of the standings with 39 points from 19 matches, four clear of second-placed Greuther Furth.
This means that Köln finished the 2013/14 Bundesliga season as champions going into the winter break.
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Ujah: My second chance with Eagles will come
Anthony Ujah has already fired four goals for FC Cologne and he tells MTNFootball.com he hopes to soon get a second chance with Nigeria.
In this special interview, he says he is a young player who is still learning and who will get his chance again to shine with the Eagles after a difficult showing at the FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil.
You must have been over the moon when you debuted for the Nigeria U-23 team in Tanzania about three years ago even though you lost that game
I was very happy to be called up to the U-23s as that was my first time to put on the green-white- green shirt. Yes, it didn’t go well in that game, but I’m glad to have played a part and felt highly honoured to have represented Nigeria.
How was it like being at the FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil in June?
It was a great experience even though it didn’t go so well for us. Being in the same group and on the same pitch with world-class players from Spain and Uruguay gives one great confidence to work hard for more future achievements.
Would you say you took your chance in the Eagles? You have since then not been called up by the Eagles. Does this worry you and could your international career be over before it has even got off the ground?
As a striker scoring goals is always the target so I would say I haven’t but as a young player with more to learn and give I believe I still have a future in the team and with hard work and God’s grace it will come to pass.
What is the difference between playing in the Bundesliga and playing in the German lower league?
There is no big difference between the first and second leagues here in Germany as the second league has one of the highest attendance figures in Europe for a second league team.
Nigeria have been drawn against Ethiopia for a place at next year’s World Cup. What should we expect?
It will not be an easy game though we are the favourites we still have to do the right thing, which I believe the team is well equipped with quality players to take us to the World Cup.
Cologne played 0-0 at home with Kaiserlautern on Friday. Were you disappointed as Cologne are now three points behind leaders Greuther Furth?
I am not disappointed because it was a difficult game for both teams and before this game we were in the third position and now we have moved to second, so I see it as progress.
Is this the season for Cologne to bounce back to the Bundesliga? If so, why?
We are having a good run so far though it’s still early to know the favourites for promotion. We will keep trying to gather as many points as we could and hopefully by Christmas we will stay within the top three spots.
What would you say has been responsible for your superb form at Cologne this season?
Hard work and God’s favour is all I believe is responsible. Also, I wanted to prove myself here in Germany that’s why I refused to move abroad earlier.
Which club were really serious about signing you in the summer?
Dinamo Zagreb.
What do you have to say about the Cologne fans?
They were one of the reasons I chose to stay here. We have the largest number of fans in the league and our last game was a fully packed, 50,000, and the atmosphere was fantastic
Sunday Oliseh once played for Cologne, what impressions did he leave at the club?
The people have spoken well of Oliseh and that shows he has left a good impression not just here, but in Germany as a whole.
A lot was expected of you at Mainz but that transfer did not seem to work to plan. What do you think was the problem?
I didn’t get the trust and belief I expected from the coach of Mainz so I had to leave. He felt I needed time to adapt, but I felt differently that I can help the team and I left and began to make an instant impact at Cologne.
How good is your German now?
My German has improved a lot and I can now communicate very well with my colleagues.
Have you kept in touch with those at your former base in Norway?
I still have a few friends at LSK though most have left to other clubs and also I keep in touch with the staff as they were all very nice to me and the other Africans who played in the club.