Odafa Onyeka Okolie
Nigerian footballer (born 1985)
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Odafa Onyeka Okolieⓘ]}€ (born 6 June 1985) is a Nigerian former professional footballer who spent most of his career in India.[1][2] He last played for Gokulam Kerala in the I-League.[3] He was once the highest paid footballer in I-league history, earning approximately ₹16 million per year in 2011 while playing for Mohun Bagan.[4] Odafa is second in the list of all-time leading goalscorer in the I-League and National Football League history with 179 goals,[5] and has been the top goal scorer on three consecutive seasons.[6]
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Okolie with Churchill Brothers in 2011 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Odafa Onyeka Okolie | ||
| Date of birth | 6 June 1985 | ||
| Place of birth | Nigeria | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Position | Striker | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2002–2003 | Peerless | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2003–2004 | Mohammedan | ? | (1) |
| 2004–2005 | Muktijoddha | 28 | (34) |
| 2005–2011 | Churchill Brothers | 116 | (117) |
| 2011–2014 | Mohun Bagan | 60 | (51) |
| 2014–2016 | Churchill Brothers | 0 | (0) |
| 2014–2016 | → Sporting Goa (loan) | 23 | (14) |
| 2017 | Southern Samity | 9 | (9) |
| 2018 | Gokulam Kerala | 3 | (0) |
| Total | 239 | (226) | |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
He also holds the record for scoring the most hat-tricks in I-League and National Football League combined, with 14 hat-tricks across all seasons, including 13 of those in the I-League.[7][8]
Career
Early career
Okolie started his career in 2002 as a defender with Kolkata based clubs Peerless SC and Mohammedan.[9]
Churchill Brothers
After a lackluster start to his career which saw him play for Indian club Mohammedan,[10] and Bangladeshi club Muktijoddha SKC where he scored 34 goals from 28 appearances. In 2005, Okolie went back to India and signed for Churchill Brothers as a striker. He debuted for the club in 2005–06 National Football League Second Division and scored 4 goals, which helped the club getting promoted to the National Football League. 2006–07 National Football League was break out season for him, as he scored 18 goals and became the top scorer of the league. Okolie was the top scorer in newly formed I-League in two consecutive seasons and won the league in 2008–09. He scored record 113 top division league goals for the club.[11]
Mohun Bagan
On 1 June 2011, he signed a then record one-year deal with Mohun Bagan for approximately $600,000.[4] On 23 October 2011, Odafa scored a hat-trick in his debut for Bagan in a 3–1 victory over Pailan Arrows.[12]
Return to Churchill Brothers and loan to Sporting Goa
On 13 May 2014, Okolie re-joined Churchill Brothers, but later in March 2015, he joined Sporting Goa on a loan deal after Churchill brothers were excluded from the I-League. He helped the club narrowly avoid relegation and was subsequently retained for another season.[13]
Southern Samity
In March 2017, Okolie Joined I-League 2nd Division club Southern Samity. He scored 9 goals in the 2016–17 I-League 2nd Division and became the top scorer.
Gokulam Kerala
In January 2018, Okolie joined I-League club Gokulam Kerala.[14]
Career statistics
- As of match played 15 January 2018[15]
| Club | Season | League | Federation Cup | Durand Cup | AFC | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Mohammedan | 2003–04[10] | NFL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | |||
| Churchill Brothers | 2005–06[16] | NFL 2 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 4 | ||
| 2006–07 | NFL | 18 | 18 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | — | 21 | 21 | ||
| 2007–08 | I-League | 16 | 22 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 11 | — | 21 | 34 | ||
| 2008–09 | I-League | 22 | 26 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | — | 25 | 33 | ||
| 2009–10 | I-League | 24 | 22 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 5[a] | 3 | 34 | 31 | |
| 2010–11 | I-League | 26 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 26 | 25 | ||
| Total | 116 | 117 | 12 | 11 | 7 | 17 | 5 | 3 | 164 | 148 | ||
| Mohun Bagan | ||||||||||||
| 2011–12 | I-League | 26 | 26 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 29 | 27 | ||
| 2012–13 | I-League | 22 | 19 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | 26 | 23 | ||
| 2013–14 | I-League | 12 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 12 | 26 | ||
| Total | 60 | 51 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0 | — | 67 | 56 | |||
| Sporting Goa (loan) | 2014–15 | I-League | 11 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 11 | 8 | |
| 2015–16 | I-League | 12 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 12 | 6 | ||
| Total | 23 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 23 | 14 | |||
| Southern Samity | 2016–17 | I-League 2 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 9 | 9 | |
| Gokulam Kerala | 2017–18 | I-League | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | |
| Career total | 211 | 192 | 19 | 16 | 7 | 17 | 5 | 3 | 242 | 227 | ||
- One appearance in AFC Champions League qualifying play-off, Four appearance and three goals AFC Cup
Honours
Churchill Brothers
- I-League: 2008–09; runner-up 2007–08[17]
- Durand Cup: 2007, 2009
- IFA Shield: 2009
Muktijoddha SKC
- Federation Cup (Bangladesh) runner-up: 2005
Individual