Haruna Babangida
Encyclopedia
Haruna Babangida is a Nigeria
n footballer who currently is free agent
.
Babangida is a hard working, quick right wing
who can also play on the left side.
He is the younger brother of Tijani Babangida
and Ibrahim Babangida
. Babangida is the eighth of ten brothers.
, before signed by AFC Ajax at age 13. He was snapped up by FC Barcelona
a year later. In 1998, aged 15, Babangida made his first-team debut for the Catalan giants in a pre-season friendly against AGOVV Apeldoorn
, becoming the second youngest ever player to feature for Barcelona. However, he did not make the breakthrough and in 2002–03 was loaned to second division
side Terrassa CF
, before spending the following season playing for FC Barcelona B
and Cádiz CF
(in the second half).
FC Metalurh Donetsk
then took him to Ukraine
on a permanent basis.
.
In the first season, he played 25 league appearances and started 11 times for the double-winners
. He rarely scored, but scored his first UEFA Champions League
goal at home against Lyon
, in the third minute, but the match ended as 1–4 lost.
On 25 May 2007, Olympiakos CFP officially released Haruna Babangida.
He made his debut for Apollon Limassol
on 1 September 2007 against rival team AEL Limassol, where he scored two goals in an eventual 4–3 win.
with an option to extend the contract for two more years.
On 26 June 2010, he scored his first goal against Panathinaikos. The half season that was less than successful for Babangida, with only a single appearance in the Bundesliga. In December of that year, Mainz released him.
on 20 August 2003, in a friendly match which Nigeria lost 0–3 to Japan
in Tokyo
.
|2002–03||Terrassa
||Segunda División
||38||5||||||||||||||||
|-
|2003–04||Cádiz
||Segunda División
||14||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2004–05||rowspan="2"|Metalurh Donetsk
||rowspan="2"|Premier League
||8||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|2005–06||2||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2005–06||rowspan="2"|Olympiacos
||Alpha Ethniki
||25||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|2006–07||Super League
||8||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|2007–08||rowspan="2"|Apollon Limassol
||rowspan="2"|First Division
||23||9||||||||||||||||
|-
|2008–09||31||9||||||||||||||||
|-
|2009||Kuban Krasnodar
||Premier League
||14||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|2010–11||Mainz
||Bundesliga||1||0||||||||||||||||
52||5||||||||||||||||
10||2||||||||||||||||
33||3||||||||||||||||
54||18||||||||||||||||
14||1||||||||||||||||
1||0||||||||||||||||
163||29||||||||||||||||
|}
|-
|2003||1||0
|-
!Total||1||0
|}
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
n footballer who currently is free agent
Free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....
.
Babangida is a hard working, quick right wing
Winger (sport)
In certain sports, such as football, field hockey, ice hockey, handball, rugby union, lacrosse and rugby league, the term winger is the name of a position. It refers to positions on the extreme left and right sides of the pitch . In American football and Canadian football, the analogous position...
who can also play on the left side.
He is the younger brother of Tijani Babangida
Tijjani Babangida
Tijani Babangida is a retired Nigerian footballer, who played as a winger. Known for his pace, his playing style was sometimes compared to that of Marc Overmars. Babangida spent the majority of his playing career at Ajax. Overall, he has played in five different countries on three different...
and Ibrahim Babangida
Ibrahim Babangida (footballer)
Ibrahim Babangida is a retired Nigerian footballer.-Career:Babangida played for Katsina United, Stationery Stores F.C...
. Babangida is the eighth of ten brothers.
Early career
Haruna Babangida started his youth career at Shooting Stars FCShooting Stars FC
Shooting Stars Football Club is a Nigerian soccer club based in Ibadan.-History:The club was one of the founders of the Nigerian Premier League in 1972, when they were called WNDC Ibadan .The nickname "Shooting Stars" was added with the suggestion of team foundation members the late Jide...
, before signed by AFC Ajax at age 13. He was snapped up by FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona , also known as Barcelona and familiarly as Barça, is a professional football club, based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain....
a year later. In 1998, aged 15, Babangida made his first-team debut for the Catalan giants in a pre-season friendly against AGOVV Apeldoorn
AGOVV Apeldoorn
AGOVV Apeldoorn is a Dutch football club, playing in the Eerste Divisie, based in Apeldoorn.The club was founded on 25 February 1913, as AGOSV, which stood for Apeldoornse Geheel Onthoudersvoetbalvereniging Steeds Voorwaarts...
, becoming the second youngest ever player to feature for Barcelona. However, he did not make the breakthrough and in 2002–03 was loaned to second division
Segunda División
The Segunda División is the lower tier of the two professional football leagues in Spain. From the season 2008-09 onwards, the name of the league is Liga Adelante.-History:...
side Terrassa CF
Terrassa FC
Terrassa Futbol Club, S.A.D. is a Spanish football team based in Terrassa, Barcelona, in the autonomous community of Catalonia. Founded in 1906, it currently plays in 3ª - Group 5, holding home matches at Estadi Olímpic de Terrassa, with a capacity of 11.500 spectators.-History:In 1914, Terrassa's...
, before spending the following season playing for FC Barcelona B
FC Barcelona B
Futbol Club Barcelona B is a Spanish football team. They are the reserve team of FC Barcelona. Reserve teams in the Spanish football league system play in the same football pyramid as their senior team rather than a separate league. However reserve teams cannot play in the same division as their...
and Cádiz CF
Cádiz CF
Cádiz Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. is a Spanish football team based in Cádiz, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1910, it currently plays in Segunda División B - Group 4, holding home games at Estadio Ramón de Carranza, with a 22,000-seat capacity.Salvadoran legend Mágico González, who...
(in the second half).
FC Metalurh Donetsk
FC Metalurh Donetsk
FC Metalurh Donetsk is a Ukrainian professional football club from the city of Donetsk. The club currently plays in the Ukrainian Premier League.- Pre-history :...
then took him to Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
on a permanent basis.
Greece & Cyprus
In 2005, Olympiacos CFP signed Babangida on a three-year contract after he impressed in a pre-season tournament in SpainSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
.
In the first season, he played 25 league appearances and started 11 times for the double-winners
The Double
The Double is a term in association football which refers to winning a country's top tier division and its primary cup competition in the same season...
. He rarely scored, but scored his first UEFA Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
goal at home against Lyon
Olympique Lyonnais
Olympique Lyonnais is a French association football club based in Lyon. They play in France's highest football division, Ligue 1. The club was formed as Lyon Olympique Universitaire in 1899, according to many supporters and sport historians, but was nationally established as a club in 1950. The...
, in the third minute, but the match ended as 1–4 lost.
On 25 May 2007, Olympiakos CFP officially released Haruna Babangida.
He made his debut for Apollon Limassol
Apollon Limassol
Apollon Limassol is a Greek Cypriot sports club, based in Limassol. It has football, basketball and volleyball teams. Founded in 1954, Apollon F.C...
on 1 September 2007 against rival team AEL Limassol, where he scored two goals in an eventual 4–3 win.
Mainz 05
On 14 June 2010, he signed a one-year contract for 1. FSV Mainz 051. FSV Mainz 05
1. Fußball- und Sportverein Mainz 05 e. V., usually shortened to 1. FSV Mainz 05, Mainz 05, or simply Mainz, is a 1905 founded German association football club based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. In addition to the football section the 1. FSV Mainz 05 has a handball and table tennis department...
with an option to extend the contract for two more years.
On 26 June 2010, he scored his first goal against Panathinaikos. The half season that was less than successful for Babangida, with only a single appearance in the Bundesliga. In December of that year, Mainz released him.
Vitesse
On 12 January 2011 he joined Vitesse as a testplayer and on the 16th he signed a contract until the end of the season.International career
He made his debut for NigeriaNigeria national football team
The Nigeria national football team, nicknamed the Super Eagles or Green Eagles, is the national team of Nigeria and is controlled by the Nigeria Football Federation . The team has ranked as high as 5th in the FIFA World Rankings, in April 1994...
on 20 August 2003, in a friendly match which Nigeria lost 0–3 to Japan
Japan national football team
The Japan national football team represents Japan in association football and is operated by the Japan Football Association, the governing body for association football in Japan...
in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
.
Club statistics
|-|2002–03||Terrassa
Terrassa FC
Terrassa Futbol Club, S.A.D. is a Spanish football team based in Terrassa, Barcelona, in the autonomous community of Catalonia. Founded in 1906, it currently plays in 3ª - Group 5, holding home matches at Estadi Olímpic de Terrassa, with a capacity of 11.500 spectators.-History:In 1914, Terrassa's...
||Segunda División
Segunda División
The Segunda División is the lower tier of the two professional football leagues in Spain. From the season 2008-09 onwards, the name of the league is Liga Adelante.-History:...
||38||5||||||||||||||||
|-
|2003–04||Cádiz
Cádiz CF
Cádiz Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. is a Spanish football team based in Cádiz, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1910, it currently plays in Segunda División B - Group 4, holding home games at Estadio Ramón de Carranza, with a 22,000-seat capacity.Salvadoran legend Mágico González, who...
||Segunda División
Segunda División
The Segunda División is the lower tier of the two professional football leagues in Spain. From the season 2008-09 onwards, the name of the league is Liga Adelante.-History:...
||14||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2004–05||rowspan="2"|Metalurh Donetsk
FC Metalurh Donetsk
FC Metalurh Donetsk is a Ukrainian professional football club from the city of Donetsk. The club currently plays in the Ukrainian Premier League.- Pre-history :...
||rowspan="2"|Premier League
Ukrainian Premier League
The Ukrainian Premier League is the highest division of Ukrainian annual football championship. As the Supreme League it was founded in 1991 after the fold of the Soviet Union's Vysshaya Liga. In 2008 it was reformed into a more autonomous entity of the Football Federation of Ukraine and changed...
||8||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|2005–06||2||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2005–06||rowspan="2"|Olympiacos
Olympiacos CFP
----Olympiacos Club of Fans of Piraeus, , , transliterated Olympiakos Sindesmos Filathlon Pireos, is the most popular multisport club and the most successful in Greece, based in Piraeus....
||Alpha Ethniki
Super League Greece
The Superleague Greece is the highest professional football league in Greece. It was formed on July 16, 2006 and replaced Alpha Ethniki at the top of the Greek football league system. The league consists of 16 teams and runs from August to May, with teams playing 30 games each...
||25||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|2006–07||Super League
Super League Greece
The Superleague Greece is the highest professional football league in Greece. It was formed on July 16, 2006 and replaced Alpha Ethniki at the top of the Greek football league system. The league consists of 16 teams and runs from August to May, with teams playing 30 games each...
||8||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|2007–08||rowspan="2"|Apollon Limassol
Apollon Limassol
Apollon Limassol is a Greek Cypriot sports club, based in Limassol. It has football, basketball and volleyball teams. Founded in 1954, Apollon F.C...
||rowspan="2"|First Division
Cypriot First Division
The Cypriot Championship First Division is the top tier football league competition in Cyprus. As of 2007 it is sponsored by Marfin Popular Bank and is hence officially known as Marfin Laiki League .-Format:...
||23||9||||||||||||||||
|-
|2008–09||31||9||||||||||||||||
|-
|2009||Kuban Krasnodar
FC Kuban Krasnodar
FC Kuban is a Russian football club based in Krasnodar. In 2011 will play in the Russian Premier League after having won the Russian First Division in 2010....
||Premier League
Russian Premier League
The Russian Premier League , currently called SOGAZ Russian Football Championship due to sponsorship reasons, is the top division of Russian football. There are 16 teams in the competition...
||14||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|2010–11||Mainz
1. FSV Mainz 05
1. Fußball- und Sportverein Mainz 05 e. V., usually shortened to 1. FSV Mainz 05, Mainz 05, or simply Mainz, is a 1905 founded German association football club based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. In addition to the football section the 1. FSV Mainz 05 has a handball and table tennis department...
||Bundesliga||1||0||||||||||||||||
52||5||||||||||||||||
10||2||||||||||||||||
33||3||||||||||||||||
54||18||||||||||||||||
14||1||||||||||||||||
1||0||||||||||||||||
163||29||||||||||||||||
|}
|-
|2003||1||0
|-
!Total||1||0
|}
External links
- BDFutbol profile
- cadistas1910.com profile
- Haruna Babangida at Transfermarkt.co.uk