Asisat Lamina Oshoala

MON Mon, MON or Mon. may refer to: Places * Mon State, a subdivision of Myanmar * Mon, India, a town in Nagaland * Mon district, Nagaland * Mon, Raebareli, a village in Uttar Pradesh, India * Mon, Switzerland, a village in the Canton of Grisons * An ...

(born 9 October 1994) is a Nigerian professional footballer who plays as a

striker Striker or The Strikers may refer to: People *A participant in a strike action *A participant in a hunger strike *Blacksmith's striker, a type of blacksmith's assistant *Striker's Independent Society, the oldest mystic krewe in America People wi ...

for Spanish Liga F club FC Barcelona and the Nigeria women's national team. Widely regarded as one of the greatest African female footballers of all time and one of the best in the world, she is one of the most celebrated African female footballers of all time, and she has a record of winning African Women's Footballer of the Year for five times. Asisat previously played for English clubs

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

and Liverpool, Chinese club Dailan, and Nigerian clubs

Rivers Angels Rivers Angels F.C. (formerly Larry Angels F.C.) is a Nigerian football club based in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. They play in the Nigeria Women Premier League, the top flight division in the female soccer league system. History The club wa ...

and FC Robo. She won the 2015 FA Women's Cup with Arsenal; two league championships and a cup title with Dalian; and the 2019–20 Copa de la Reina and 2019–20 Supercopa de España Femenina with Barcelona. She was the first African (and Nigerian) player to score a goal in a UEFA Women's Champions League final and has helped Barcelona reach the semi-finals three consecutive years, and one final. On 16 May 2021, Asisat became the first African woman to win the UEFA Champions League, after Barcelona defeated Chelsea 4–0 in the finals. The following season, she became the first African woman to win the

Primera División Primera may refer to * Nissan Primera, a car * Primera Air, a former airline * Primera división (disambiguation), multiple top division football leagues * Primera, Texas, a town in Cameron County, Texas * Alí Primera, Venezuelan musician, compos ...

's Pichichi Trophy, and in August 2022 became the first African woman nominated to the Ballon d'Or. Asisat was the highest goal scorer at the

2014 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup The 2014 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup was an international association football tournament and the world championship for women's national teams under the age of 20, presented by Grant Connell, organized by the sport's world governing body FIFA. ...

and was named best player at the tournament. She was also named best player and second top goalscorer with the

Super Falcons The Nigeria national women's football team, nicknamed the Super Falcons, represents Nigeria in international women's association football, women's football and is controlled by the Nigeria Football Federation. The team is by far Africa's most s ...

team who won the

2014 African Women's Championship The 2014 African Women's Championship, the 11th edition of the tournament, was held in Namibia. This tournament, organized by the Confederation of African Football, was also a qualification tournament for the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, with top t ...

. In September 2014, Oshoala was made a Member of the Order of the Niger by President of Nigeria Goodluck Jonathan. In 2021, she was named in the Forbes 30 Under 30.

Club career

Liverpool: 2015–2016

On 23 January 2015, Oshoala joined Liverpool in England's Women's Super League. The club's manager, Matt Beard, called her "one of the best young players in the world". Although rumours had linked her with other clubs, she was very happy to join Liverpool. She was the first player from an African nation to compete in the top women's league in England. Despite missing two months of the 2015 season with a knee injury, Oshoala scored three goals in the nine games in which she played as defending champions Liverpool finished in seventh place. Her first goal of the season was the game-opener of a 2–1 win against Birmingham City on April 1. During the club's 2–1 win over Manchester City, she scored the game-opening goal in the tenth minute. She scored the club's third goal of a 3–1 win against Arsenal on 12 July. In January 2016, Liverpool reported that a transfer bid from

had activated the release clause in Oshoala's contract and that she was discussing personal terms with the London club.

Arsenal: 2016–2017

In March 2016, Oshoala signed with Arsenal. Arsenal manager, Pedro Losa said of her signing, "Asisat is a fantastic talent and will be a great addition to our squad. She is quick, with excellent feet and has proven she can score goals so it's very positive she has decided to join us." Oshoala helped Arsenal win the

2016 FA Women's Cup Final The 2016 FA Women's Cup Final was the 46th final of the FA Women's Cup, England's primary cup competition for women's football teams. The showpiece event was the 23rd to be played directly under the auspices of the Football Association (FA) and ...

on 14 May. The win marked the club's 14th title. Oshoala made 13 appearances for the club during the 2016 season and scored two goals. She scored the game-winning goal in the 2–0 win against Notts County on 28 August. Arsenal finished in third place with a record.

Dalian Quanjian: 2017–2019

On 10 February 2017, Oshoala signed with Chinese club Dailan (大连女子足球俱乐部). During the 2017 season, she scored 12 goals helping Dalian Quanjian win the league championship. She was awarded the league's Golden Boot award for most goals scored. The same year, she scored four goals during the 2017 Women's Super Cup and helped the club defeat Shanghai 5–3 to win the championship. In October 2018, she helped the club win the league championship for the second consecutive year.

FC Barcelona: 2019–present

On 31 January 2019, Spanish club

FC Barcelona Femení Futbol Club Barcelona Femení, commonly referred to as Barça Femení, is a Spanish professional women's association football, women's football team based in Barcelona, Catalonia. It's the women's football section of FC Barcelona and it compete ...

signed Oshoala on a loan deal until the end of the season. On May 31, 2019, Barcelona announced her full transfer to the club and extension until 2022. She scored seven goals in her seven appearances for the club during the 2018-19 season. Barcelona finished in second place during the regular season with a record. Oshoala scored Barcelona's only goal in a 4–1 defeat to Lyon in the 2019 UEFA Women's Champions League Final. She was the first African (and Nigerian) to score in a Champions League Final. During the 2019-20 season, Oshoala scored 20 goals in her 19 appearances for Barcelona. She scored her first goals of the season with a brace against Atlético Madrid on 19 September 2019. In October, she scored another brace against Madrid lifting Barcelona to a 4–0 win. On January 11, 2020, Oshoala scored four goals in a 6–0 win against CD Tacon. Barcelona finished in first place during the regular season with an undefeated record. Oshoala's 20 goals ranked second in the league following teammate Jenni Hermoso with 23. Oshoala scored the game-opening goal in the fourth minute of the 2019–20 Copa de la Reina semi-finals against Sevilla. She provided assists on two the goals to lift Barcelona to a 6–0 win. Barcelona defeated Logroño 3–0 to clinch the championship. On 21 August 2020, Oshoala provided the assist for

Kheira Hamraoui Kheira Hamraoui (born 13 January 1990) is a French professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Division 1 Féminine club Paris Saint-Germain and the France national team. Club career Youth career Hamraoui began her football career ...

's game-winning goal in the

2019–20 UEFA Women's Champions League The 2019–20 UEFA Women's Champions League was the 19th edition of the European women's club football championship organised by UEFA, and the 11th edition since being rebranded as the UEFA Women's Champions League. The competition was postponed ...

quarter-final against Atlético Madrid lifting Barcelona to the semi-final. On 24 March 2021, Oshoala scored the game-winning goal in the team's 3–0 win over Manchester City during the first leg of the

2020–21 UEFA Women's Champions League The 2020–21 UEFA Women's Champions League was the 20th edition of the European women's club football championship organised by UEFA, and the 12th edition since being rebranded as the UEFA Women's Champions League. The final was held at the Gam ...

quarterfinals. On 16 May 2021, Oshoala became the first African woman to win the UEFA Champions League, after coming on in the 71st minute of the finals with Barcelona defeating Chelsea 4–0. On 10 March 2022, Oshoala signed a two-year contract extension that would keep her at Barcelona until 30 June 2024.

Style of play

Oshoala found success as a

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for Nigeria's youth teams but made most of her early appearances for the senior national team as an attacking midfielder. She was nicknamed "Seedorf" after male footballer Clarence Seedorf and has also been referred to as "Superzee" by her teammates.

International career

Oshoala's club coach

Edwin Okon Edwin Edem Okon (born 19 October 1970) is the head coach of Rivers Angels. Born in Cross River State, Okon got a coaching certificate from the sport institute in Lagos State. Following the failure of Nigeria to win the 2012 African Women's Cha ...

was serving as the national team interim manager when he gave her a debut senior cap in a

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defeat by world champions

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in September 2013. Oshoala was named as the best player at the

and was the top goalscorer at the tournament with seven goals. She was also named best player and second top goalscorer with the

team who won the

. She also won the BBC Women's Footballer of the Year 2015. In September 2014, Oshoala was made a Member of the Order of the Niger by President of Nigeria Goodluck Jonathan. On 8 June 2015, Oshoala scored her first

2015 FIFA Women's World Cup The 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup was the seventh FIFA Women's World Cup, the quadrennial international soccer championship contested by the women's national teams of the member associations of FIFA. The tournament was hosted by Canada for the ...

goal when she scored the team's second goal in a 3–3 draw with

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in Winnipeg. After the team was defeated 2–0 by Australia and 1–0 by the United States, they did not advance to the knockout stages. Oshoala was also a member of the Super Falcons team who won the African Women's Championship in 2016 and 2018. She scored three goals in the 2018 Edition in Ghana. Oshoala vice-captained the Super Falcons at the

2019 FIFA Women's World Cup The 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup was the eighth edition of the FIFA Women's World Cup, the quadrennial international Women's association football championship contested by 24 women's national teams representing member associations of FIFA. It ...

in France. During the team's second group stage match against South Korea, she scored in the 75th minute lifting Nigeria to a 2–0 win. Oshoala was named Player of the Match. Her goal was nominated for Goal of the Tournament by FIFA. Nigeria finished third in Group A and advanced to the knockout stages where they faced two-time champions Germany and were defeated 3–0 in a controversial match heavily influenced by video assistant referee (VAR).

International goals

Honours

;Rivers Angels * Nigerian Women's Championship: 2014 *

Nigerian Women's Cup The AITEO Cup (formerly Women Challenge Cup and Federations Cup) is a cup competition in Nigeria. Rivers Angels of Port Harcourt have won the most titles. The tournament along with Nigeria Women Premier League are the two recognized competition f ...

: 2013, 2014 ;Arsenal * FA Women's Cup: 2015–16 ;Dalian Quanjian F.C. * Chinese Women's Super League:

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;FC Barcelona *

: 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22 * UEFA Women's Champions League: 2020–21; *

Supercopa de España Femenina The Supercopa de España Femenina or the ''Spanish Women's Super Cup'' is a super cup tournament in Football in Spain, Spanish football, contested by the winners and runners up of the Copa de la Reina de Fútbol, Copa de la Reina and the remaining ...

: 2019–20, 2021–22 * Copa de la Reina: 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22 ;Nigeria * African Women's Championship:

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

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FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup The FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup is an international association football tournament, organized by FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association), for national teams of women under the age of 20. The tournament is held in even-numbere ...

runner-up:

Individual * BBC Women's Footballer of the Year: 2015 *Queen of The Pitch Award: 2014 * African Women's Footballer of the Year: 2014, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2022 *African Women's Youth Player of the Year: 2014 * African Women's Championship Golden Ball:

* African Women's Championship Golden Boot:

Golden Boot:

Golden Ball:

Top scorer: 2021–22 * Chinese Women's Super League Top scorer:

*IFFHS CAF Best Woman Player of the Decade 2011–2020 * IFFHS CAF Woman Team of the Decade 2011–2020 * EaglesTracker Nigeria Women's Most Valuable Player of the Season: 2020–21

Other work

Oshoala launched the Asisat Oshoala Foundation in 2019 focused on empowering girl footballers in Africa. The foundation hosts the annual Asisat Oshoala Foundation Football4girls tournament in Lagos. She is a NIKE Ambassador. In 2021, she was named to Forbes 30 Under 30. In October 2021, she was appointed unto FIFA's technical advisory group on the growth and advancement of women's football. The grouped is headed by Jill Ellis and has fellow African Doreen Nabwire also as a member.

Personal life

Oshoala recounts that her parents were not supportive when she dropped out of school to pursue a football career. She is a

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

References

External links

*
Profile
at

Profile
at

Arsenal Women Arsenal Women Football Club, commonly referred to as Arsenal, is an English professional women's association football, women's football club based in London Borough of Islington, Islington, London, England. The club plays in the FA Women's Su ...

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Oshoala, Asisat 1994 births Rivers Angels F.C. players Nigeria women's international footballers Living people Liverpool F.C. Women players Arsenal W.F.C. players Nigerian Muslims Sportspeople from Lagos Women's association football forwards Yoruba sportswomen Women's Super League players Nigerian women's footballers 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup players Dalian Quanjian F.C. players Chinese Women's Super League players 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup players FC Barcelona Femení players Primera División (women) players Nigerian expatriate women's footballers Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in England Expatriate women's footballers in England Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in China Expatriate women's footballers in China Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in Spain Expatriate women's footballers in Spain FC Robo players African Women's Footballer of the Year winners