Micheal Azira
Ugandan association footballer (born 1987)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Micheal Azira (born 22 August 1987) is a Ugandan professional footballer.
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Micheal Azira | ||
| Date of birth | 22 August 1987 | ||
| Place of birth | Kampala, Uganda | ||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2008–2010 | Lindsey Wilson Blue Raiders | ||
| 2011 | Mobile Rams | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2010–2011 | Mississippi Brilla | 28 | (5) |
| 2012–2013 | Charleston Battery | 40 | (5) |
| 2014–2015 | Seattle Sounders FC | 25 | (0) |
| 2015 | → Seattle Sounders FC 2 (loan) | 1 | (0) |
| 2016–2018 | Colorado Rapids | 66 | (0) |
| 2018 | → Colorado Springs Switchbacks (loan) | 1 | (0) |
| 2018–2019 | Montreal Impact | 29 | (1) |
| 2019–2020 | Chicago Fire | 10 | (0) |
| 2021–2022 | New Mexico United | 45 | (1) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2016–2021 | Uganda | 10 | (0) |
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* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 21 October 2022 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 23 April 2022 | |||
Professional career
Azira signed with Charleston Battery of USL Pro in 2012.[1][better source needed] He scored the winning goal for Charleston against Wilmington Hammerheads in the 2012 USL Pro Championship match.[2] Azira scored six more goals for the Battery in 2013.
Azira was transferred to Seattle Sounders FC of Major League Soccer on 6 March 2014.[3][4] He made his MLS debut as a substitute against Montréal on 23 March.[5]
Seattle did not renew Azira's contract following the 2015 season. Azira entered the MLS Waiver Draft in December 2015 and was selected by Colorado Rapids.[6]
Azira was traded by the Rapids on 8 August 2018 to Montreal Impact for a fourth-round draft pick in the 2020 MLS SuperDraft.[7]
Azira was traded again in August 2019, this time to the Chicago Fire.[8] His contract with the club expired at the end of the 2020 season.[9]
On 1 February 2021, Azira signed with USL Championship side New Mexico United.[10]
International career
Azira plays for his birth nation of Uganda. Coach Milutin Sredojević selected Azira for the final 23-man roster for 2017 Africa Cup of Nations.[11]
Coaching career
Azira served as head coach for the Daniel Island Soccer Academy U-16 and U-18 Boyz teams in Charleston, South Carolina. He also served as assistant coach at UMS-Wright in Mobile, Alabama for two seasons, helping lead them to a state title in 2011.[12]
Personal life
Azira previously held a U.S. green card, which qualified him as a domestic player for MLS roster purposes.[13]
On 9 October 2021, Azira was naturalized as an American citizen in Albuquerque.[14]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 23 April 2022[15]
| Club | Season | League | Domestic Cup | League Cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Mississippi Brilla | 2010 | USL PDL | 10[16] | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 10 | 0 | ||
| 2011 | 15[17] | 5 | — | 2[a] | 0 | — | 17 | 5 | ||||
| Total | 25 | 5 | — | 2 | 0 | — | 27 | 5 | ||||
| Charleston Battery | 2012 | USL Pro | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3[b] | 1 | — | 17 | 1 | |
| 2013 | 26 | 5 | 2[c] | 0 | 2[b] | 2 | — | 30 | 7 | |||
| Total | 40 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 3 | — | 47 | 8 | |||
| Seattle Sounders U-23 | 2013 | USL PDL | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 1 | ||
| Seattle Sounders FC | 2014 | MLS | 14 | 0 | 5[c] | 0 | 4[d] | 0 | — | 23 | 0 | |
| 2015 | 10 | 0 | 1[c] | 0 | 2[d] | 0 | 4[e] | 0 | 17 | 0 | ||
| Total | 24 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 40 | 0 | ||
| Seattle Sounders U-23 (loan) | 2014 | USL PDL | 6 | 0 | — | — | — | 6 | 0 | |||
| Tacoma Defiance (loan) | 2015 | USL | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | |
| Colorado Rapids | 2016 | MLS | 30 | 0 | 1[c] | 0 | 4[d] | 0 | — | 35 | 0 | |
| 2017 | 30 | 0 | 1[c] | 1 | — | — | 31 | 1 | ||||
| 2018 | 5 | 0 | 1[c] | 0 | — | 1[e] | 0 | 7 | 0 | |||
| Total | 65 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 73 | 1 | ||
| Colorado Springs Switchbacks (loan) | 2018 | USL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| Montreal Impact | 2018 | MLS | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 10 | 1 | ||
| 2019 | 19 | 0 | 2[f] | 0 | — | — | 21 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 29 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 31 | 1 | ||||
| Chicago Fire | 2019 | MLS | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2020 | 6 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 6 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | ||
| New Mexico United | 2021 | USL Championship | 28 | 1 | — | — | — | 28 | 1 | |||
| 2022 | 2 | 0 | 2[c] | 0 | — | — | 4 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 30 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 32 | 1 | |||
| Career total | 235 | 13 | 15 | 1 | 17 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 262 | 17 | ||
- Appearance(s) in USL PDL playoffs
- Appearance(s) and goal in USL Pro playoffs
- Appearance(s) in US Open Cup
- Appearance(s) in MLS Cup playoffs
- Appearance(s) in CONCACAF Champions League
- Appearance(s) in Canadian Championship
International
- As of matches played on 16 July 2019[18]
| Uganda national team | ||
| Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1 | 0 |
| 2017 | 4 | 0 |
| 2018 | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | 5 | 0 |
| Total | 10 | 0 |
Honours
Charleston Battery
- USL Pro Championship: 2012
- Seattle Sounders
- U.S Open Cup: 2014
- Supporters Shield: 2014