NAIJA STARS OF THE
NAIJA STARS OF THE GERMAN BUNDESLIGA 4 COMPLETE Augustine Azuka Okocha DOB: 14 August 1973 POB: Enugu, Nigeria Height 1.73 m Position: Attacking midfielder OKOCHA OKOCHA FOOTBALL | DecemberProfile Stepping out with Anthony Yeboah and Maurizio Ganz from Frankfurt kocha began his European adventure Oin Germany in rather fortuitous circumstances and it’s worth repeating here. The young Nigerian, after finishing the football season back home with his Enugu Rangers side, was on vacation in Germany on the invitation of his friend Binebi Numa, himself a member of the 1985 FIFA U- 17 World Cup winning Golden Eaglets, who was then playing for German Third Division side Borussia Neunkirchen. One morning Okocha accompanied Numa to training, where he asked to join in. The Neunkirchen coach was impressed with Okocha's skills and invited him back the next day before offering him a contract. A year later, he joined 1. FC Saarbrücken, but stayed only a few months with the Bundesliga 2 side before a move to the 1. Bundesliga with Eintracht Frankfurt. And the rest, as they say, is now history. P r esented b y Okocha joined Eintracht Frankfurt in December 1991, where he linked up with many well-known players including Ghanaian international striker Tony Yeboah and later Thomas Doll. The major highlight of his stay with Eintracht was a goal he scored against Karlsruhe, dribbling in the penalty box and slotting the ball past goalkeeper Oliver Kahn even going past some players twice. The goal was voted Goal of the Season by many soccer magazines, and also voted as 1993 Goal of the Year by viewers of Sportschau (an ARD German TV sports program). In 1995, Okocha, Yeboah and Maurizio Gaudino were all involved in a feud with BUNDESLIGA TEAM 95/96 Eintracht Frankfurt 24 7 94/95 Eintracht Frankfurt 27 7 93/94 Eintracht Frankfurt 19 2 92/93 Eintracht Frankfurt 20 2 91/92 Borussia Neunkirchen 35 7 OTHER CLUBS: 07/08 Hull City 18 0 06/07 Qatar SC Doha 31 6 05/06 Bolton Wanderers 27 1 04/05 Bolton Wanderers 31 6 03/04 Bolton Wanderers 35 0 02/03 Bolton Wanderers 31 7 01/02 Paris Saint-Germain 20 4 00/01 Paris Saint-Germain 16 2 99/00 Paris Saint-Germain 23 2 98/99 Paris Saint-Germain 25 4 96/98 Fenerbahçe SK 63 30 90/91 Enugu Rangers 0 0 Scoring the famous goal against the legendary Oliver Khan manager Jupp Heynckes, which led to their departure from the club. Despite leaving in acrimony, Okocha still remains a cult hero at the club and he was warmly welcome last November when he attended the Bundesliga match against Borussia Dortmund. On the international front, Okocha first appeared for the U-20 at the African Youth Championship in Mauritius in 1993 before going on to become part of the golden generation of Nigerian football, winning four medals in four AFCON appearances, an Olympic Gold medal in 1996 and two World Cup appearances. He retired from international football as captain of the Super Eagles. In retirement, Okocha is a businessman and Chairman of the Delta State Football Association. He’s also involved in footballrelated promotional work and charity. On duty for Frankfurt COMPLETE FOOTBALL | December 5
