Meet Warri Born Footballer And First Black Player To Play For Poland National Team
Olisadebe
LAGOS FEBRUARY 9TH (URHOBOTODAY)-Emmanuel Olisadebe is a 43-year-old retired Polish professional football player who played for Portsmouth and the Poland national team as a striker.
Born in Warri, Nigeria to Igbo parents, in the early 2000s, Olisadebe relocated from Nigeria to Poland where he debuted his professional career as a footballer with Jasper United. He had a successful playing career with the club, before moving to Polonia Warsaw, where he won the Ekstraklasa Cup and Polish SuperCup.
After Olisadebe’s eligibility for the citizenship of Poland, his football prowess caught the attention of the national team of Poland and he was quickly called up to the team, making history as the first black player in the history of the Poland national team.
During his early career with the Poland national team, he netted eight goals in ten qualification matches as the Poland squad proceeded to the 2002 FIFA World Cup, their first since 1986. He scored their second of three goals in a winning game against the Republic of Norway. He also netted Poland’s first winning goal of their 2002 FIFA World Cup against the United States in the last group stage. Throughout his career, he scored eleven international goals for Poland in twenty five appearances between 2000 and 2004.
His individual football awards include 2001 Polish footballer of the Year, 2002 fourth best Polish sportsman of the Year, and the 2002 World Cup Player of the Year. He was also nominated for the 2002 FIFA World Player of the Year.
However, after his retirement from the world of football, Olisadebe relocated back to his home country, Nigeria. Even though he reveals to sometimes missing Poland, he prefers life in his original homeland of Nigeria, where he now benefits from housing construction.
Content created and supplied by: RealWriter01 (via Opera News )
