Christian Chukwu
 |
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Christian Chukwu Okoro | ||
| Date of birth | 4 January 1951 | ||
| Position(s) | Defender | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1972-1981 | Enugu Rangers | ? | (?) |
| International career | |||
| 1974-1981 | Nigeria | 54 | (5) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1982–1985 | Enugu Rangers | ||
| 1985-1986 | Nigeria national under-17 football team | ||
| 1986-1988 | Enugu Rangers | ||
| 1998–? | Kenya | ||
| 2003–2005 | Nigeria | ||
| ?–2009 | Enugu Rangers | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Christian Chukwu Okoro (born 4 January 1951[1]) is a Nigerian former football player and coach. A defender in his playing days, he captained the Nigeria national team to its first win in the African Nations Cup.
Playing career
[edit]As a player, Chukwu captained the Nigerian national team, then known as the Green Eagles between 1974 and 1980. He was in the Nigerian squads that won the Africa Nations' Cup in 1980 and finished runners' up in 1976 and 1978. He was the first Nigerian captain to lift the African Nations Cup trophy after a 3–0 victory over Algeria in the final of the 1980 tournament.[2]
In October 1998 he was appointed coach of the Kenya national team. Later, from 2003 to 2005, he coached Nigeria, leading them to reach semifinals at the 2004 African Cup of Nations. During the 2006 World Cup qualification phase, Chukwu was blamed for inept coaching and management of the Nigerian national football team, and two matches before the qualifying campaign was over, he was suspended.[3] In two matches – home and away – against eventual group winners Angola, Nigeria failed to win either one of those two encounters. This was blamed on Chukwu and those two crucial failures eventually led to Nigeria failing to qualify for the World Cup, after having appeared at all World Cup finals tournaments since their debut in 1994.
Chukwu coached Enugu Rangers to 6th place in the 2008–2009 edition of the Nigeria Premier League. However, he was sacked on 5 August 2009 for failing to reach the club's targets for the season.
Later life
[edit]In April 2019 the Nigeria Football Federation announced that they would help Chukwu pay for his medical bills for treatment in the United States,[4] while billionaire Femi Otedola said he would also contribute.[5] It was later announced that he would travel for treatment in May after the required funds were raised he was cured.[6]
References
[edit]- ^ "Christian CHUKWU". FIFA. Archived from the original on 15 February 2009. Retrieved 16 October 2009.
- ^ "African Nations Cup 1980". 1 May 2003. Retrieved 16 October 2009.
- ^ "Nigeria suspends Chukwu". BBC Sport. 21 June 2005.
- ^ "Nigeria Football Federation to help ailing legend Christian Chukwu". BBC Sport. 8 April 2019.
- ^ "Billionaire Femi Otedola to cover costs for ailing legend Christian Chukwu". BBC Sport. 9 April 2019.
- ^ "Chukwu to travel for treatment in May". BBC Sport. 24 April 2019.
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- Living people
- 1951 births
- Nigerian men's footballers
- Men's association football defenders
- Nigeria men's international footballers
- Africa Cup of Nations–winning players
- 1978 African Cup of Nations players
- 1980 African Cup of Nations players
- Competitors at the 1978 All-Africa Games
- African Games silver medalists for Nigeria
- African Games medalists in football
- Rangers International F.C. players
- Nigerian football managers
- 2004 African Cup of Nations managers
- Kenya national football team managers
- Nigeria national football team managers
- Rangers International F.C. managers
- Nigerian expatriate men's footballers
- Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in Kenya
- Expatriate football managers in Kenya
- Nigerian football defender stubs