Joseph Michael Yobo (born 6 September 1980) is a Nigerian former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played as a

centre back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

. He was the captain of the Nigerian national team until his international football retirement in June 2014, and was Nigeria's record appearance holder. In February 2020, he was appointed assistant coach of the Super Eagles by the

Nigeria Football Federation The Nigeria Football Federation (known as Nigeria Football Association until 2008) is Nigeria's football governing body. It was formally launched in 1945 and formed the first Nigerian national football team in 1949. It joined CAF in 1959 and FIF ...

Early years

Yobo's birthplace and origin is Kono, an Ogoni community in

Khana Khana may refer to: * Khana language Places * Khana, Arghakhanchi, a village in Arghakhanchi district, Nepal *Khana, Nigeria, a Local Government Area in Rivers State *Khana Junction in Bardhaman district, West Bengal, India *Kingdom of Khana in Ba ...

Local Government Area of

Rivers State, Nigeria Rivers State, also known as Rivers, is a state in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria (Old Eastern Region). Formed in 1967, when it was split from the former Eastern Region, Rivers State borders include: Imo to the north, Abia and Akwa Ib ...

. Yobo left Nigeria to join

Standard Liège Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège (; nl, Standard Luik ; german: Standard Lüttich ) or simply Standard in Belgium, is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Liège. They are one of the most ...

in 1998. He made his first team debut in 2000, and went on to appear 46 times. In 2001, he was bought by

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

Club career

Everton

Soon after making his debut, Yobo was loaned to

Tenerife Tenerife (; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands. It is home to 43% of the total population of the archipelago. With a land area of and a population of 978,100 inhabitants as of Janu ...

. After around nine months, Yobo returned to Marseille, before joining Everton, again on loan, in July 2002. A £1 million fee was required to register the player, and he became the first signing of

David Moyes David William Moyes ( ; born 25 April 1963) is a Scottish professional football coach and former player. He is currently the manager of Premier League club West Ham United. He was previously the manager of Preston North End, Everton, Manches ...

. An option to make the move permanent was taken up and completed in 2003 after a dispute between Yobo and Marseille was settled, with Everton agreeing a fixed additional fee of £4 million. Yobo became one of the most consistent players in the Everton squad, and was one of only seven players in the entire league to play every minute of every game throughout the 2006–07 season; his teammate Joleon Lescott also being an ever-present throughout the season. The delay, in 2006, in signing a new contract with Everton lead to rumours of a move to

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 ...

, but on 22 July, Yobo committed himself to

Goodison Park Goodison Park is a football stadium in the Walton area of Liverpool, England. It has been the home stadium of Premier League club Everton F.C. since its completion in 1892. Located in a residential area 2 miles (3 km) north of Liverpool ...

until 2010. On 15 April 2007, Yobo became the record appearance holder for an overseas player at Everton, a record he held until early 2012. For the

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...

match against

Larissa Larissa (; el, Λάρισα, , ) is the capital and largest city of the Thessaly region in Greece. It is the fifth-most populous city in Greece with a population of 144,651 according to the 2011 census. It is also capital of the Larissa regiona ...

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

on 25 October 2007, Yobo was named as captain in the absence of

Phil Neville Philip John Neville (born 21 January 1977) is an English football manager and former player, who is the head coach of MLS team Inter Miami CF. He is also the co-owner of Salford City, along with several of his former Manchester United teamma ...

and thus became the first African to captain the club. On 6 May 2009, Yobo scored his first goal of the season against

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...

to seal a 3–1 win. In the 2009–10 season, Yobo had to adjust to his new defensive partner,

Sylvain Distin Sylvain Distin (born 16 December 1977) is a French former professional footballer. He is left-footed and played as a central defender, and was also capable of playing at left-back. Distin began his career playing for French amateur sides, workin ...

, after Joleon Lescott left and

Phil Jagielka Philip Nikodem Jagielka ( or ; born 17 August 1982) is an English professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Stoke City. Jagielka started his career with Sheffield United in 2000, where he played mainly as a central midfiel ...

became injured. On 29 November 2009, he scored an own goal in Everton's 2–0 defeat to

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

in the

Merseyside derby The Merseyside derby is the football matches between Everton and Liverpool, the two primary clubs in Liverpool, England. Named after the county of Merseyside, in which Liverpool is located, it is the longest running top-flight derby in England ...

. Distin, Jagielka and

John Heitinga John Gijsbert Alan "Johnny" Heitinga (born 15 November 1983) is a Dutch football coach and a former player who played as a centre back. He manages Jong Ajax, the reserves team of AFC Ajax. A product of the Ajax Youth Academy, he played for their ...

were increasingly selected over Yobo, confining him to the bench.

Fenerbahçe

On 31 August 2010, Yobo signed a one-year loan contract with Fenerbahçe. Yobo played in 30 official matches and scored a goal, helping his team win the

league League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football Sports * Sports league * Rugby league, full contact footba ...

title. On 6 September 2011, Fenerbahçe and Everton agreed on another loan deal for €700,000 and Yobo signed a one-year contract worth €2.35 million. On 4 August 2012, he re-signed for Fenerbahçe once again, but this time on a permanent basis on a 3-year contract, after having played for Everton for 10 years. On 17 August Fenerbahçe played against

Torku Konyaspor Konyaspor Kulübü (, Konya Sports Club) is a Turkish professional Association football, football club based in Konya. They are better known as Konyaspor. In 1922 Konyaspor were founded with the name Konya Gençlerbirliği and have played at thei ...

and Yobo scored a goal in this match. Before the 2014–2015 season his contract with Fenerbahçe was terminated with mutual agreement. On 31 August 2014 was awarded with the plaque of appreciation and have been released from Fenerbahçe.

Norwich City

On 30 January 2014, Yobo returned to England on loan at

Norwich City Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...

for the remainder of the season with a view to a permanent move in the summer. He marked his debut for the club with a clean sheet against top-scoring club

Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...

on 8 February.

International career

Yobo is a former

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

international, who has been

capped In sport, a cap is a player's appearance in a game at international level. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of rugby football and association football. In the ea ...

101 times and represented the Super Eagles at three

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...

s and six

Africa Cup of Nations The Africa Cup of Nations referred to as AFCON (french: Coupe d'Afrique des Nations, sometimes referred to as CAN, or TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons), and sometimes as African Cup of Nations, is the main internati ...

tournaments. After participating in Nigeria's run to the

1999 FIFA World Youth Championship The 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship took place in Nigeria between 3 and 24 April 1999. This was the 12th edition of the tournament. Qualification The following 24 teams qualified for the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship. :1.Teams that ...

quarter-finals, Yobo made his senior international debut against

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most cent ...

in a 2002 FIFA World Cup qualifier on 24 March 2001. He played in all six of the team's matches in the

2002 Africa Cup of Nations The 2002 African Cup of Nations was the 23rd edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the association football championship of Africa ( CAF). It was hosted by Mali. Just like in 2000, the field of sixteen teams was split into four groups of four. Ca ...

and was included in the squad for the

2002 FIFA World Cup The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams organized by ...

, where he was again ever-present, assisting

Julius Aghahowa Julius Efosa Aghahowa (born 12 February 1982) is a Nigerian former professional association football, footballer who played as a striker (association football), striker. He was known for his pace and his back-flips when he scored goals. Aghahowa ...

's goal in a 2–1 loss to

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

. Yobo made his second World Cup appearance at the 2010 tournament in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, after which he assumed the

captaincy A captaincy ( es, capitanía , pt, capitania , hr, kapetanija) is a historical administrative division of the former Spanish and Portuguese colonial empires. It was instituted as a method of organization, directly associated with the home-rule ...

on the international retirement of

Nwankwo Kanu Nwankwo Kanu (born 1 August 1976) is a Nigerian former professional footballer who played as a forward. He was a member of the Nigeria national team, and played for Nigerian team Iwuanyanwu Nationale, Dutch side Ajax, Inter Milan of Italy, and ...

. The veteran defender was no longer a first choice player at the

2013 Africa Cup of Nations The 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, also known as the Orange Africa Cup of Nations South Africa 2013 for sponsorship reasons, held from 19 January to 10 February 2013, was the 29th Africa Cup of Nations, the football championship of Africa organized ...

, but lifted the trophy after appearing as an 89th-minute substitute in Nigeria's 1–0

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...

defeat of

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the ...

. In June 2014, Yobo was included in

Stephen Keshi Stephen Okechukwu Keshi (23 January 1962 – 7 June 2016) was a Nigerian football player and manager. During his playing career, Keshi played as a defender and earned 60 caps for the Nigeria national team, making him the nation's second-most ...

's squad for the

2014 FIFA World Cup The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...

. He was named in the starting line-up for both the second and third group matches, helping the Super Eagles to clean sheet in a 1–0 victory over

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

. On 30 June, he made his 100th international appearance, captaining Nigeria against

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

in the

round of 16 A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...

. After scoring an own goal in the 2–0 defeat, Yobo announced his international retirement, saying: ''"This is it. I can look back on my career with great pride. I wanted to leave on a high for my country. Defeat by France was not the right way to go but I'm happy with all I've done for the national team. It's time to give a chance to other people to come through."''

Coaching career

On 12 February 2020, Yobo was appointed assistant coach of the Super Eagles by the

after a brief meeting held in

Abuja Abuja () is the capital and eighth most populous city of Nigeria. Situated at the centre of the country within the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), it is a planned city built mainly in the 1980s based on a master plan by International Plann ...

. He was appointed assistant coach to replace Imama Amapakabo. Yobo said "I am bringing back that motivation. As a former captain, I'm bringing inspiration. I've been there and I've done it all. I was a fan of the team before I became an assistant coach, so I've seen from a fanatical point of view how people feel when they are watching the team. We as players, while playing, don't notice these things but after my retirement, I've been a pundit, I've given my opinion about what should be done in the team." He also said "I'm bringing back my experience. Having over 15 years of consistency in my career, I think this is a lot. The good thing is that the spirit is going to improve. Having been a pundit and looking at the team, I think we can go a lot higher with the quality we have".

Personal life

In 2010, following a brief courtship, Yobo married former

MBGN Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria – often abbreviated as MBGN – is a pageant organised by Silverbird Group with the main purpose of sending representatives to international competitions. Originally known as Miss Universe Nigeria, it was rena ...

Adaeze Igwe in a midnight ceremony held in Jos. The couple wedded in a very low key ceremony barely three months after they met in December 2009. However, it is known that they are said to be trying to hide their marital troubles from the press and general public. The couple welcomed a baby boy named Joey Yobo April 2010. He is the younger brother of former Nigeria international Albert Yobo. In July 2008, his younger brother Norum was kidnapped in Port Harcourt,

Rivers State Rivers State, also known as Rivers, is a state in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria (Old Eastern Region). Formed in 1967, when it was split from the former Eastern Region, Rivers State borders include: Imo to the north, Abia and Akwa Ib ...

, Nigeria and held for ransom. He was eventually released after 12 days on 17 July 2008. It was widely reported in the Nigerian media that Yobo went to T.B. Joshua for prayers after suffering a hamstring injury in the

2010 Africa Cup of Nations The 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, also known as the Orange (telecommunications), Orange Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 27th Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial association football, football championship of Africa (Confederat ...

. Yobo and his wife, Adaeze Igwe were conferred with chieftaincy titles of Mene Aborlo 1 and Waamene Aborlo 1 respectively of

Ogoniland The Ogonis are a people in the Rivers South East senatorial district of Rivers State, in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria. They number just over 2 million and live in a homeland which they also refer to as Ogoniland. They share common ...

by King GNK Gininwa of Ogoni Kingdom on Saturday, 28 May 2016. This was a day after his testimonial match marking his exit from active football was organised by the Rivers State Government on Friday, 27 May 2016

Charity work

In 2007, Yobo set up the Joseph Yobo Charity Foundation, to help under-privileged children in Nigeria. As of 18 July 2007, he has handed out over 300 scholarship awards ranging from primary to university level. Yobo has started a football academy in the

Ogoni The Ogonis are a people in the Rivers South East senatorial district of Rivers State, in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria. They number just over 2 million and live in a homeland which they also refer to as Ogoniland. They share common ...

region of Nigeria. He also runs football camps in

Lagos Lagos (Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the List of cities in Africa by population, second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national ca ...

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Fenerbahce *

Süper Lig The Süper Lig (, ''Super League''), officially known as Spor Toto Süper Lig for sponsorship reasons, is a Turkish professional league for association football clubs. It is the top-flight of the Turkish football league system and is run by the ...

: 2010–11 *

Turkish Cup The Turkish Cup ( Turkish: ''Türkiye Kupası'') is a football cup competition in Turkish football, run by the Turkish Football Federation since 1962. During a brief sponsorship period with Fortis, its sponsored name was ''Fortis Türkiye Kupası ...

: 2011–12, 2012–13 Nigeria *

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

Individual *

CAF Team of the Year The CAF Team of the Year is an annual football award given by the Confederation of African Football during the CAF Awards. In 2007, the CAF did not choose the team of the year, but rather the best ten players of the last fifty years. The ten pla ...

: 2008

References

External links

*
BBC Coverage of Joseph Yobo Foundation

International appearances
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Yobo, Joseph 1980 births Living people People from Khana Nigerian footballers Nigeria men's international footballers Nigeria men's under-20 international footballers Nigerian expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in England Expatriate footballers in France Expatriate footballers in Spain Expatriate footballers in Belgium Expatriate footballers in Turkey Men's association football central defenders Standard Liège players Olympique de Marseille players Everton F.C. players Fenerbahçe S.K. footballers Norwich City F.C. players Ligue 1 players Premier League players Belgian Pro League players Süper Lig players 2002 FIFA World Cup players 2002 African Cup of Nations players 2004 African Cup of Nations players 2006 Africa Cup of Nations players 2008 Africa Cup of Nations players 2010 Africa Cup of Nations players 2010 FIFA World Cup players 2013 Africa Cup of Nations players 2014 FIFA World Cup players FIFA Men's Century Club Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in Turkey Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in England Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in France Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in Spain Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in Belgium Africa Cup of Nations-winning players FA Cup final players