Abubakar Bello-Osagie
Abubakar Bello-Osagie (born 11 August 1988),[1] commonly known as Abubakar or Abu,[2] is a Nigerian football striker[3] who currently plays for Sliema Wanderers in the Maltese Premier League.
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Abubakar Bello-Osagie | ||
Date of birth | 11 August 1988 | ||
Place of birth | Benin City, Nigeria | ||
Height | 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
Playing position(s) | Defensive and offensive midfielder | ||
Club information | |||
Current team | Sliema Wanderers | ||
Number | 11 | ||
Youth career | |||
–2005 | Bendel Insurance | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
2005–2006 | River Plate | 5 | (1) |
2006–2007 | Internacional | 4 | (1) |
2008 | Vasco da Gama | 4 | (0) |
2009–2010 | Caxias | 9 | (2) |
2010–2013 | Qormi | 63 | (20) |
2013 | → Valletta (loan) | 9 | (5) |
2013–2016 | Sliema Wanderers | 34 | (16) |
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 10 of may 2013 |
Career
Born in Benin City, Edo State,[1] in 2005, he left Bendel Insurance of his home city of Benin, and joined River Plate in Argentina.[4] After four months playing for the club from Buenos Aires, Abubakar joined Brazilian club Internacional in 2006, through Argentine entrepreneur Marcelo Housemann, playing for the club's B team.[3] At Internacional he was teammates with Alexandre Pato and Luis Adriano. His performances with the B-Team were good, scoring a few goals in the Second Division, but he only managed a few first team appearances.
Bello-Osagie joined Rio de Janeiro-based club Vasco in December 2007, after being scouted by the former footballer Bismarck.[5] On 17 July 2008, he stayed on the bench for the first time, against Goiás,[6] playing his first professional league match as a Vasco player on 20 July 2008,[7] when his club was defeated by Atlético-PR 3–1 at Arena da Baixada, Curitiba, for the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A.[8] He played four Série A matches in 2008, without scoring a goal.[9] Abu signed on 29 April 2009 for Caxias.[10] In the summer of 2010 Abu signed for Qormi in the Maltese Premier Division, where he has enjoyed a very successful spell and achieved a several accolades, such as 'Player of the Month'.[11]
References
- "Abubakar Bello-Osagie" (in Portuguese). Brazilian Football Confederation. Archived from the original on 10 October 2008. Retrieved 23 July 2008.
- "Vasco anuncia a contratação de atacante nigeriano de 19 anos" (in Portuguese). Estadão. 11 December 2007. Archived from the original on 31 December 2012. Retrieved 26 July 2008.
- "Conheça Abu, o novo atacante nigeriano do Inter" (in Portuguese). Sport Club Internacional official website. 30 March 2006. Archived from the original on 29 February 2012. Retrieved 23 July 2008.
- "Elenco Atual" (in Portuguese). Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama official website. Archived from the original on 19 June 2008. Retrieved 24 July 2008.
- "Vasco contrata o nigeriano Abubakar" (in Portuguese). Extra Online. 11 December 2007. Retrieved 24 July 2008.
- "Pressionado, Vasco tenta se recuperar no BR-08 diante do Goiás" (in Portuguese). UOL Esporte. 17 July 2008. Retrieved 26 July 2008.
- "Atlético-PR e Vasco jogam por seus técnicos e para fugir da crise" (in Portuguese). UOL Esporte. 20 July 2008. Retrieved 26 July 2008.
- "Ficha técnica: Atlético-PR 3 x 1 Vasco" (in Portuguese). Gazeta Esportiva. 20 July 2008. Archived from the original on 22 September 2008. Retrieved 23 July 2008.
- "Abu" (in Portuguese). Yahoo! Brasil Esportes. Archived from the original on 5 January 2013. Retrieved 27 July 2008.
- "Caxias contrata ex-colorado Abu e ex-gremista Marcelinho" (in Portuguese). clicRBS. 29 April 2009. Retrieved 3 July 2009.
- "Qormi forward Abubakar Bello-Osagie is the BOV Player of the Month for October 2010". 9 November 2010. Retrieved 9 August 2012.