Michael Babatunde
Nigerian footballer (born 1992)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Michael Babatunde (born 24 December 1992) is a Nigerian footballer who plays as a midfielder for Dhaka Abahani.[2]
|
Babatunde with Kryvbas Kryvyi Rih in 2011 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 24 December 1992 | ||
| Place of birth | Lagos, Nigeria | ||
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10+1⁄2 in) | ||
| Position | Winger | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Water FC | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2010 | Heartland | 29 | (15) |
| 2011–2013 | Kryvbas Kryvyi Rih | 44 | (2) |
| 2013–2015 | Volyn Lutsk | 36 | (4) |
| 2015 | Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk | 2 | (0) |
| 2015–2016 | Raja Casablanca | 14 | (3) |
| 2016–2018 | Qatar SC | 25 | (20) |
| 2018–2021 | Wydad AC | 32 | (12) |
| 2022–2023 | Laçi | 24 | (2) |
| 2024 | Mash’al Mubarek | 19 | (3) |
| 2025 | KS Pogradeci | 9 | (1) |
| 2026– | Dhaka Abahani | 0 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2013–2016 | Nigeria[1] | 11 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 29 August 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 18 February 2026 | |||
He began his playing career in Nigeria before playing for clubs in Ukraine, Morocco, and Qatar. He also represented the Nigeria national team, participating in the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup and the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Club career
Babatunde moved to Ukraine in 2011, joining Kryvbas Kryvyi Rih and beginning his career in Europe. He later played for Volyn Lutsk, and on 13 August 2015, he signed a one-year contract with Dnipro. Upon joining Dnipro, he described the club as one of the biggest clubs in Ukraine and said that playing for the club had been his dream.[3]
In December 2015, Babatunde joined Raja Casablanca in Morocco.[4] He played in the Botola Pro during the 2015–16 season, scoring three goals. His performances as a foreign player attracted attention in the Moroccan league's foreign player category at the end of the season.
On 31 May 2016, he moved to Qatar SC, a club in the Qatar Stars League.[5] Qatar SC were in the second tier at the time, and Babatunde helped the team earn promotion, finishing as runners-up in the 2016–17 Qatar Second Division and securing promotion to the top flight.
In 2018, he returned to Morocco and signed a three-year contract with Wydad AC.[6] With Wydad AC, he won the Botola Pro title in the 2018–19 season and also reached the final of the CAF Champions League in the same season.
International career
Babatunde played for the Nigeria national team from 2013 to 2016. He made his debut at the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup, coming on as a substitute in Nigeria's group-stage match against Uruguay.[7]
At the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, he appeared in the group-stage matches against Iran, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Argentina. He featured against Bosnia and Herzegovina and Argentina during the group stage, as Nigeria finished second in the group and advanced to the round of 16.[8]
Babatunde continued to represent Nigeria and in May 2016, he appeared in friendly matches against Mali and Luxembourg. He made a total of 11 appearances for the national team.[9]
Honours
Qatar SC
- Qatari Second Division: 2016–17
Wydad
- Botola: 2018–19
- CAF Champions League runner-up: 2018–19
