Onua Thomas Obasi (born 24 September 1988 in Birmingham, England) is an English

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 plays for the Baltimore Blast in the Major Arena Soccer League. He is a versatile player who plays

left 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 ...

, centre back and defensive midfielder.

Career

College and amateur

Obasi also played soccer for

University of Liverpool , mottoeng = These days of peace foster learning , established = 1881 – University College Liverpool1884 – affiliated to the federal Victoria Universityhttp://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/2004/4 University of Manchester Act 200 ...

from 2008 - 2011 before transferring to Central Connecticut State University. During his college years in England in 2010–2011, he played in the development leagues for Leigh Genesis in England and Cefn Druids in Wales. He was also part of the successful Bootle FC team that won the North West Counties 1st Division in 2008/09 (4 apps 1 Goal). He went on to make 36 appearances for

Bootle Bootle (pronounced ) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England, which had a population of 51,394 in 2011; the wider Bootle (UK Parliament constituency), Parliamentary constituency had a population of 98,449. Histo ...

in the 2009/10 season before moving to Leigh Genesis. Obasi played two years of

college soccer College soccer is played by teams composed of soccer players who are enrolled in colleges and universities. It is very prominent in United States, Japan, South Korea, Canada, and as well as in South Africa and the Philippines. The United Kingd ...

at Central Connecticut State University between 2011 and 2012. In 2011, Obasi started all 19 games for the Central Connecticut State University Blue Devils where he scored three goals and two assists. Obasi earned First-Team North Atlantic Region and Northeast Conference first team in both 2011 and 2012 He was selected to the New England College All-Star game. He also received All-American First Team honours in 2012. While at college, Obasi also appeared for USL PDL clubs Western Mass Pioneers and

Connecticut FC Azul AC Connecticut is an American amateur soccer team based in Newtown, Connecticut, playing in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American soccer pyramid. The team colors are blue, black and white. History CFC Azul was founded as a USL PDL team ...

in 2012 and again with CFC Azul after college in 2013.

Professional

Obasi signed his first professional deal with USL Pro club

Rochester Rhinos Rochester New York FC, formerly known as the Rochester Rhinos, are an American professional soccer team based in Rochester, New York, United States. Founded in 1996, as the Rochester Raging Rhinos, they changed their name to Rochester Rhinos to ...

on 30 January 2014. In the 2014 season, he played 24 games and scored 1 goal (against the Charlotte Eagles on 16 August 2014 in a 3–1 loss. On 14 May 2014, he also scored an over time game-winning goal against his former team, Western Mass Pioneers in the US Open Cup in a 2–1 win. In the 2015 season, he played 20 games and had 4 assists. He started all 3 playoff games including the 2–1 victory in the USL Championship against

Los Angeles Galaxy II LA Galaxy II is an American professional soccer team based in the Los Angeles suburb of Carson, California, United States founded in 2014. It is the reserve team of the LA Galaxy. The team competes in MLS Next Pro, the third tier of the United Sta ...

. After the 2015 season, Obasi trialed with the

Philadelphia Union The Philadelphia Union are an American professional soccer club based in Chester, Pennsylvania. The Union compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. Founded on February 28, 2008, the club began playing in 201 ...

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

. Obasi played

indoor soccer Indoor soccer or arena soccer (known internationally as indoor football, fast football, or showball) is five-a-side version of minifootball, derived from association football and adapted to be played in walled hardcourt indoor arena. Indoor socc ...

for the Baltimore Blast of the Major Arena Soccer League in the 2014–2015 season - playing 19 games, scoring 9 goals and 10 assists. He was named to the league's All-Rookie team. Obasi returned to Baltimore for the 2015–2016 season, featuring in 18 of the Blast's 19 regular season games and all 6 of their playoff games. Obasi scored the opening goal in the championship final in which Baltimore beat Sonora 14-13; this was Baltimore's 8th indoor championship. Obasi received a 2015-16 MASL Honorable Mention alongside teammate

Tony Donatelli Anthony "Tony" Donatelli (born June 7, 1984 in Glenside, Pennsylvania) is an American soccer player who plays as a midfielder for the Baltimore Blast of the Major Arena Soccer League. Career Youth and College Donatelli played for Hunter Soccer ...

. In January 2016, Obasi signed with the Ottawa Fury. Obasi returned to the Baltimore Blast on August 25, 2022.

International

Obasi began playing futsal in 2008 and it led to him being discovered for the England national futsall team. He was the leading goal scorer and was voted tournament MVP in the World University Futsal Championships while representing Great Britain. During the year he had 19 appearances and 4 goals.

Honors

United Soccer League United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a Association football, soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues curren ...

*USL Championship **Winner : 2015 *USL Regular Season **Winner: 2015 *USL Eastern Conference (Playoffs) **Winner: 2015 *USL Eastern Conference (Regular Season) **Winner: 2015 * Major Arena Soccer League **All Rookie Team: 2014-2015 * Major Arena Soccer League **Winner: 2015-2016

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Obasi, Onua 1988 births Living people English men's footballers English expatriate men's footballers Western Mass Pioneers players AC Connecticut players Rochester New York FC players Ottawa Fury FC players Baltimore Blast players Utica City FC players Men's association football midfielders Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Expatriate men's soccer players in Canada USL League Two players USL Championship players Major Arena Soccer League players Footballers from Birmingham, West Midlands North American Soccer League (2011–2017) players English expatriate sportspeople in the United States English expatriate sportspeople in Canada English men's futsal players Alumni of the University of Liverpool Ontario Fury players