.jpg) Anichebe playing forEverton in 2011 | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Victor Chinedu Anichebe[1] | |||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1988-04-23)23 April 1988 (age 37)[2] | |||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Lagos, Nigeria | |||||||||||||
| Height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)[3] | |||||||||||||
| Position | Forward | |||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||
| 2003–2006 | Everton | |||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||
| 2006–2013 | Everton | 131 | (18) | |||||||||||
| 2013–2016 | West Bromwich Albion | 55 | (6) | |||||||||||
| 2016–2017 | Sunderland | 18 | (3) | |||||||||||
| 2017 | Beijing Enterprises Group | 11 | (2) | |||||||||||
| Total | 215 | (29) | ||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||
| 2008 | Nigeria U23 | 5 | (2) | |||||||||||
| 2008–2011 | Nigeria | 11 | (1) | |||||||||||
Medal record
| ||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||
Victor Chinedu Anichebe (born 23 April 1988) is a Nigerian former professionalfootballer who played as aforward.[4]
Anichebe was born inLagos, Lagos State, Nigeria[5] but moved toLiverpool,Merseyside, England, aged one. His family originally lived inToxteth before settling inCrosby. He is the cousin of former professional football playerIffy Onuora,[6] OlympianAnyika Onuora and professional basketball player Chiz Onuora. He is also an Olympic silver medallist, competing for Nigeria in the 2008 Olympics.[7]
In March 2009, Anichebe received an apology fromCheshire Police when he was confronted for looking in a jeweller's window inKnutsford and his friendLee Peltier ofLiverpool handcuffed. Anichebe was on crutches due to injury at the time, and believed that the police took action because the pair are black.[8][9]
Anichebe made his reserve-team debut forEverton as a 15-year-old and his first-team debut less than two years later on 28 January 2006, as a substitute in the 89th minute of Everton'sFA Cup fourth round tie againstChelsea, replacingSimon Davies. He signed his first professional contract with Everton, a two-year deal, in April 2006.[10] On 7 May 2006, he scored his firstPremier League goal, againstWest Bromwich Albion.[11] He was awarded Everton's Reserve Player of the Season for the 2005–06 season.[12]
Anichebe scored his first two Premier League goals of the 2006–07 campaign in a 3–0 win againstNewcastle United on 30 December 2006. His contract was extended by four years towards the end of the season as Everton qualified for theUEFA Cup. In the UEFA Cup, Anichebe scored four times, againstMetalist Kharkiv,AEL,1. FC Nürnberg andBrann of Norway after coming on as a late second-half substitute in many of the matches.[citation needed] At the end of the season, he was voted by Everton fans as their Young Player of the Season.[13]
On 22 February 2009, in a match against Newcastle United, a tackle fromKevin Nolan left Anichebe and unable to play for 11 months.[14] Nolan, who received a straightred card for the foul, later settled out of court when Anichebe sued for loss of earnings.[15] He returned to first team action in January 2010 in a 2–0 victory overSunderland. His first goal on rejoining the squad came two months later in a 2–2 draw withBirmingham City. In January 2011, he signed a new four-and-a-half-year contract with Everton, along with teammateSéamus Coleman.[16]
Anichebe suffered a groin injury while on international duty in September and did not play for the rest of 2011.[17] He made his return as a second-half substitute on 1 January 2012, against West Bromwich Albion and scored in the 87th minute to give Everton a 1–0 away win.[18] He continued his comeback by coming off the bench to score the equaliser in a 1–1 withAston Villa on 14 January.[19] Anichebe continued his goalscoring form by scoring his third goal of the season as a substitute in a 1–1 withWigan Athletic on 4 February.[20] His appearance also meant he became Everton's most used substitute in the history of the club, breakingDuncan Ferguson's old record of 82.[21]
In his first Premier League start of the2012–13 season, Anichebe scored the opening goal in a 3–0 win overSwansea City with a left-footed effort from close in.[22] He then missed a number of games due to an hamstring injury, but returned in December to score a header to level the match againstWest Ham United at 1–1.[23] Everton went on to win 2–1.[24] He provided two assists during the festive season before scoring the winner against Newcastle United on 2 January 2013.[25]
In February, Anichebe scored his first goal in the FA Cup of his Everton career againstOldham Athletic in a match which ended 2–2.[26] In the second half of the season, he was used as Everton's main striker due to his impressive displays and the drop in form ofNikica Jelavić.[27] In late March, Anichebe said he wanted to finish the season with a goal tally in double figures, but he finished with 8 goals from 32 matches, still the most he has scored in a single season in his career.[28]
On 2 September 2013, Anichebe transferred to West Bromwich Albion in a deal which could rise to £6 million.[29] On 2 February, Anichebe scored his second league goal againstLiverpool to earn West Brom a point. On 11 February, he came on as a substitute and scored against Chelsea to earn West Brom a point.[30]
On 18 May 2016, it was announced Anichebe andStéphane Sessègnon would leave West Brom at the end of the 2015–16 season.[31]
On 2 September 2016, Anichebe signed a one-year contract with Sunderland to play under managerDavid Moyes, the club's ninth signing of the summer.[32][33] His first goal for the club came on 5 November 2016, when he scored in a 2–1 win againstAFC Bournemouth, as Sunderland came from behind—with ten men—to secure their first win of the2016–17 Premier League season.[34] He followed that up in the next match, on 19 November 2016, when he scored two goals in a 3–0 home win againstHull City.[35] His performances in November earned him a nomination for the PFA Fans Player of the Month award.[36]
On 23 June 2017, Anichebe joined Chinese clubBeijing Enterprises Group after he was released by Sunderland.[37]
Anichebe made his debut forNigeria on 26 March 2008 in anOlympic games qualifying match against South Africa. Anichebe came off the substitutes' bench to score the final goal in a 3–0 victory for Nigeria. He made his first start for Nigeria alongside fellow Everton playerYakubu in a friendly againstAustria on 27 May 2008 being replaced at half-time.[38]
Anichebe was selected to represent Nigeria at the2008 Summer Olympics. On 10 August 2008, he scored Nigeria's second goal in their match againstJapan. Nigeria eventually reached the final, which they lost 1–0 to Argentina, with Anichebe receiving a silver medal.[39]
Anichebe was not selected on the final 23-man roster for the2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa despite a good performance[40] during a friendly against Saudi Arabia. He scored his first senior team goal in the March 2011 friendly againstKenya. Anichebe suffered a groin injury during a 2012 African Cup of Nationsqualifying match againstMadagascar in September 2011, with Nigeria head coachSamson Siasia blaming the poor pitch.[17] TheSuper Eagles won the match 2–0 but would miss out on qualification for the tournament one month later, with the injured Anichebe unable to take part in the deciding group match againstGuinea.[41]
In October 2012, Anichebe announced he was focusing on his form for club side Everton, rather than on earning a return to the Nigerian team. He was subsequently omitted from the squad for the2013 Africa Cup of Nations, a tournament which Nigeria won. In May 2013, Anichebe temporarily retired from international football to concentrate on his club career. However, he said he would return to international football in the future.[42]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Everton | 2005–06 | Premier League | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| 2006–07 | Premier League | 19 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 4 | |
| 2007–08 | Premier League | 27 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 9 | 4 | 41 | 5 | |
| 2008–09 | Premier League | 17 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 22 | 1 | |
| 2009–10 | Premier League | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 1 | |
| 2010–11 | Premier League | 16 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 0 | |
| 2011–12 | Premier League | 12 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 6 | |
| 2012–13 | Premier League | 26 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 8 | |
| 2013–14 | Premier League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 131 | 18 | 16 | 1 | 10 | 3 | 11 | 4 | 168 | 26 | ||
| West Bromwich Albion | 2013–14 | Premier League | 24 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 3 |
| 2014–15 | Premier League | 21 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 6 | |
| 2015–16 | Premier League | 10 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | |
| Total | 55 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 63 | 9 | ||
| Sunderland | 2016–17 | Premier League | 18 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 3 |
| Beijing Enterprises Group | 2017 | China League One | 11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 2 |
| Career total | 215 | 29 | 21 | 4 | 14 | 3 | 11 | 4 | 261 | 40 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nigeria | 2008 | 4 | 0 |
| 2010 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2011 | 6 | 1 | |
| Total | 11 | 1 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 29 March 2011 | National Stadium, Abuja, Nigeria | 7 |  Kenya | 2–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
