John Obi Mikel
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - 06/2014
Personal Information
Full name
John Michael Nchekwube Obinna
Date of birth
22 April 1987
Place of birth
Jos, Nigeria
Height
1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Playing position
Defensive Midfielder
Club information
Current club
Chelsea
Number
12
Youth career
Plateau United: 2002-2004
Senior career*
Lyn: 2004-2006
6x apps / 1x goal
Chelsea: 2006-
206x apps / 1x goal
National team‡
Nigeria: 2006-
51x apps / 4x goals
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 11 May 2014.
† Appearances (Goals).
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 23 June 2013
John Michael Nchekwube Obinna (born 22 April 1987), commonly known as Mikel John Obi, John Obi Mikel or John Mikel Obi, is a Nigerian footballer, who plays as a midfielder for English club Chelsea and the Nigeria national team.
05/2014
The 52-year-old, who became the first Nigerian to lead the side into the second round at a World Cup, is attracting the interest of other countries.
He becomes the sixth manager to leave his job during the World Cup, following the departures of Honduras's Luis Suarez, Iran's Carlos Queiroz, Japan's Alberto Zaccheroni, Italy's Cesare Prandelli and Ivory Coast's Sabri Lamouchi.
Keshi, who captained Nigeria at the 1994 World Cup finals, was previously in charge of Mali and Togo.
LAST SIXTEEN
30th June 2014
France vs Nigeria 2:0
Teams who have reached the round of the last sixteen
Nigeria vs Argentina 2:3
Nigeria vs Bosnia and Herzegovina 1:0
Iran vs Nigeria 0:0
The former Dutch football-star, Ruud Gullit, hopes a team from Africa will perform well and prove to be the surprise package at the World Cup in Brazil.
The United States completed their World Cup preparations with victory over Nigeria.
Keshi feels these games have given him and his players an insight into what lies ahead. "All I need is the mentality and discipline to dominate the game and take chances," he added. "In friendlies you can correct your mistakes but in a tournament it can cost us dearly.
