Paul Ikechukwu Obiefule (born 15 May 1986 in

Owerri Owerri ( , ) is the capital city of Imo State in Nigeria, set in the heart of Igboland. It is also the state's largest city, followed by Orlu, Okigwe and Ohaji/Egbema. Owerri consists of three Local Government Areas including Owerri Municipal, ...

) is a

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...

retired

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 ...

Club career

Obiefule began his career in his home country of

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 ...

playing for Planners FC and then

Heartland Heartland or Heartlands may refer to: Businesses and organisations * Heartland Bank, a New Zealand-based financial institution * Heartland Inn, a chain of hotels based in Iowa, United States * Heartland Alliance, an anti-poverty organization i ...

, where he spent two months before being spotted by

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

side

Viborg FF Viborg Fodsports Forening ("Viborg Footsport Association"), or Viborg F.F. and VFF for short, is a Danish professional football club based in Viborg. The club was founded in 1896 and waited more than a century before winning its only national ...

, who signed him in 2004. During his time at Viborg he attracted much interest from many overseas clubs but in 2007 it was announced that he had signed a one-year deal for the Norwegian club Lyn, in September 2008 signed a new contract, lasting until the end of 2011 and Was Handed Over The Captain Band Making him the First Black to Captain a Norwegian Premiership Club Obiefule was a transfer target for English Championship side

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, a ...

, Scottish

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

and Norwegian

Hønefoss __NOTOC__ Hønefoss is a town and the administrative center of the municipality of Ringerike in Buskerud county, Norway. Hønefoss is an industrial center of inner Østlandet, containing several factories and other industry. As of 1 January 2008, ...

. Obiefule verbally agreed on 14 December 2009 for a 3-year long contract with Hønefoss because of a knee injury that jeopardised his moves to either Scotland or England. Obiefule agreed on 6 months loan for

Lillestrøm Lillestrøm is a municipality in Viken county. It is located in the traditional district of Romerike. With a population of 85,757 inhabitants, it is the fourth most populated municipality in Viken. It was founded on 1 January 2020 as a merger be ...

on 2 August 2011 and was drafted into the game against Tromsø the next day, 3 August, without training with his new teammate. In February 2012 Obiefule signed a contract for the 2012 season with Finnish

Veikkausliiga Veikkausliiga (; sv, Tipsligan) is the premier division of Finnish football, the highest tier of the Finnish football league structure, comprising the top 12 clubs of the country. Its main sponsor is the Finnish national betting agency Veikkau ...

team

KuPS Kuopion Palloseura (or KuPS) is a Finnish football club, based in the ninth most populated city of Finland, Kuopio. KuPS plays in Finland's Premier League, Veikkausliiga. KuPS has won the Finnish championship six times, the Finnish Cup 4 times ...

. In November 2012, Obiefule was back training with

ahead of a proposed move to an unknown Chinese team. In August 2015, Obiefule agreed for a contract with Danish club

Holstebro Holstebro is the main town in Holstebro Municipality, Denmark. The town, bisected by ''Storåen'' ("The Large Creek") and has a population of 36,489 (1 January 2022).Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...

international and made his debut for the Super Eagles in the LG tournament in 2004. He was a member of Super Eagles squad that won bronze in Egypt in 2006. He has been capped 10 times for his country.

Personal life

Obiefule was studying agricultural economics at the

Federal University of Technology Owerri The Federal University of Technology Owerri (FUTO) is a federal government university in Owerri West, the capital of Imo State, Nigeria. The university is bounded by the communities of Eziobodo, Umuchima, Ihiagwa and Obinze. It is the premier ...

in Nigeria but gave it up to pursue a professional football career. His younger brother Polycarp Obinna Obiefule, plays currently for Mosta F.C. in Malta. His brother Pol broke a record as the highest goal ever scored in Maltese Premier League in the 2011/2012 Season with 34 Goals. Formerly member of Planners F.C. Owerri Imo State Nigeria.

References

External links

Stats at LynFotball.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:Obiefule, Paul 1986 births Living people People from Owerri Nigerian footballers Nigerian expatriate footballers Nigeria international footballers 2006 Africa Cup of Nations players Heartland F.C. players Lyn Fotball players Viborg FF players Hønefoss BK players Lillestrøm SK players Kuopion Palloseura players Assyriska FF players Danish Superliga players Eliteserien players Superettan players Expatriate footballers in Denmark Expatriate footballers in Norway Expatriate footballers in Finland Expatriate footballers in Sweden Federal University of Technology Owerri alumni Veikkausliiga players Association football midfielders Sportspeople from Imo State