Joseph Akpala
Joseph Eneojo Akpala (born 24 August 1986) is a Nigerian professional footballer who plays as a striker. He is currently unemployed after most recently playing for KV Oostende.
 Akpala with Karabükspor in October 2013 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Joseph Eneojo Akpala[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 24 August 1986 | ||
| Place of birth | Jos, Nigeria | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Striker | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1999–2002 | Pepsi Football Academy | ||
| 2003–2005 | Bendel United | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2005–2006 | Bendel Insurance | 19 | (13) |
| 2006–2008 | Charleroi | 61 | (24) |
| 2008–2012 | Club Brugge | 105 | (49) |
| 2012–2014 | Werder Bremen | 21 | (1) |
| 2013–2014 | → Karabükspor (loan) | 11 | (8) |
| 2014–2015 | Karabükspor | 25 | (7) |
| 2015–2018 | KV Oostende | 62 | (12) |
| 2018–2019 | Al-Faisaly | 14 | (5) |
| 2019–2020 | KV Oostende | 6 | (1) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2008– | Nigeria | 13 | (1) |
|
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 14:20, 28 March 2020 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 19:29, 23 June 2013 (UTC) | |||
Club career
Akpala is a product of the Pepsi Football Academy in Lagos. His first professional contract came in April 2003 with Bendel United Football Club, a Division One club in Benin City. He later joined Bendel Insurance FC, Benin City in the Premier Division of the Nigerian Professional League, in February 2005. He was to finish as joint top scorer with 13 goals in 19 games.
Subsequently, Akpala was signed by the Royal Charleroi S.C. of Belgian Jupiler Pro League in January 2006. He wore the number 27 jersey. He had a very successful campaign in 2007–08 as he topped the scorers chart with 18 goals. On 18 July 2008, Akpala joined Club Brugge signing a contract until 2013.
On 22 August 2012, Bundesliga club Werder Bremen signed Akpala after facing competition from West Ham United and Celtic. On 19 August 2013, Akpala began a week-long trial with English Championship side Reading.[2]
On 3 September 2013, Akpala signed for Turkish Karabükspor on a season loan.[3] In 2014 the deal was made permanent and he left Bremen for good.
However, only after another year, in July 2015, he returned to Belgium, signing for K.V. Oostende on a three-year-contract.[4]
International career
Akpala made his debut for Nigeria against South Africa on 6 September 2008. In June 2009, he scored his first goal for Nigeria in a 1–0 away win against France in Saint-Étienne.[5]
He was selected for Nigeria's squad at the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup.[6]
Career statistics
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Charleroi | 2005–06 | Belgian First Division | 8 | 2 | 8 | 2 | ||||||
| 2006–07 | 22 | 4 | 22 | 4 | ||||||||
| 2007–08 | 31 | 18 | 31 | 18 | ||||||||
| Total | 61 | 24 | 61 | 24 | ||||||||
| Club Brugge | 2008–09 | Belgian First Division | 32 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 6[lower-alpha 1] | 1 | – | 38 | 16 | |
| 2009–10 | Belgian Pro League | 25 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 11[lower-alpha 1] | 3 | 6[lower-alpha 2] | 1 | 45 | 12 | |
| 2010–11 | 18 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3[lower-alpha 1] | 0 | 10[lower-alpha 2] | 3 | 31 | 7 | ||
| 2011–12 | 27 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 11[lower-alpha 1] | 7 | 9[lower-alpha 2] | 2 | 48 | 22 | ||
| 2012–13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[lower-alpha 3] | 0 | – | 5 | 0 | |||
| Total | 105 | 39 | 4 | 1 | 33 | 11 | 25 | 6 | 167 | 57 | ||
| Werder Bremen | 2012–13 | Bundesliga | 21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 21 | 1 | |
| Kardemir Karabükspor (loan) | 2013–14 | Süper Lig | 11 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | – | 14 | 6 | |
| Kardemir Karabükspor | 2014–15 | Süper Lig | 25 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 2[lower-alpha 1] | 0 | – | 33 | 5 | |
| KV Oostende | 2015–16 | Belgian Pro League | 26 | 5 | 1 | 0 | – | 9[lower-alpha 2] | 2 | 36 | 7 | |
| 2016–17 | Belgian First Division A | 9 | 1 | 3 | 0 | – | 9[lower-alpha 2] | 3 | 21 | 4 | ||
| 2017–18 | 27 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2[lower-alpha 1] | 0 | 9[lower-alpha 2] | 3 | 38 | 9 | ||
| Total | 62 | 12 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 27 | 8 | 97 | 20 | ||
| Career total | 285 | 84 | 19 | 4 | 37 | 11 | 52 | 14 | 393 | 113 | ||
- Appearances in UEFA Europa League
- Appearances in Belgian Pro League playoffs
- Appearances in UEFA Champions League
References
- "fcclop_neutral.pdf" (PDF). FIFA.com. 7 June 2013. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
- Watts, Charles (19 August 2013). "Reading to take a look at Nigerian international striker Akpala". getreading.co.uk. Retrieved 19 August 2013.
- Okeleji, Oluwashina (5 September 2013). "Akpala leaves Bremen for more football in Turkey". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
- "KV Oostende strikt Joseph Akpala" (in Dutch). Het Nieuwsblad. 6 July 2015. Archived from the original on 14 November 2015.
- "Joseph Akpala Goal Sees Nigeria Shock France". goal.com. 2 June 2009. Archived from the original on 6 June 2009.
- "Nigeria to take new-look squad to Confederations Cup". BBC Sport. 9 June 2013. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
- "Joseph Akpala » Club matches". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
- Joseph Akpala at Soccerway. Retrieved 1 March 2018.
External links
- Joseph Akpala at Soccerway
- Joseph Akpala at National-Football-Teams.com
