Victor Ikpeba

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Personal information
Victor Ikpeba
Full name	Victor Nosa Ikpeba
Date of birth	June 12, 1973 (age 33)
Place of birth	Benin City, Nigeria
Height	1.74 m
Nickname	"Prince Of Monaco"
Playing position	Forward
Senior clubs¹
Years	Club	App (Gls)*
1989 1989-1993 1994-1999 1999-2001 2001-2002 2002-2003 2003-2004 2005	ACB Liegeois Monaco Borussia Dortmund Real Betis Al-Ittihad Charleroi Al-Sadd	? (?) 79 (27) 169 (55) 30 (3) 3 (0) ? (?) 15 (5) ? (?)
National team²
1992–2002	Nigeria	30 (3)
¹ Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 15:23, 5 february 2007 (UTC). ² National team caps and goals correct as of February 5, 2007. * Appearances (Goals)

Competitor for Nigeria
Olympic medal record
Men's Football
Gold	1996 Atlanta	Team Competition

Victor Nosa Ikpeba (born June 12, 1973 in Benin City) is a football striker from Nigeria. He has played thirty international matches and scored three goals for Nigeria, and played at the Football World Cups in 1994 and 1998. He also helped win the 1994 African Nations Cup and the Olympic gold medal in 1996.

Ikpeba was discovered by Belgian club RFC Liégeois during the 1989 FIFA U-17 World Championship, and moved to play in Belgium together with teammate Sunday Oliseh. At the age of 20, after scoring 17 goals in 1992-93. Ikpeba was bought by French side AS Monaco then coached by Arsène Wenger, where he gradually became a success, albeit with a tough start. He showed outstanding form subsequent to the 1996 Olympics, scoring 13 league goals to help AS Monaco win the league title. His performances earned him the title African Footballer of the Year in 1997. Two successful seasons followed, but after moving to Borussia Dortmund in 1999 things went downhill. Ikpeba never settled in German football, and as of 2005 he plays in the United Arab Emirates.

Ikpeba now lives in Monaco with his three children. His wife Atinuke died in May 2000 at the tender age of 26, after losing her battle with breast cancer.

[edit] Playing career

1989 : ACB
1989-1993 : RFC Liégeois (79 matches/27 goals)
1993-1999 : Monaco (169/55)
1999-2001 : Borussia Dortmund (30/3)
2001-2002 : Real Betis (3/0)
2002-2003 : Al Ittihad Tripoli
2003-2004 : Charleroi (15/5)
2005 : Al-Sadd

[edit] External references

Nigerian Players

Preceded by Daniel Amokachi	Belgian Ebony Shoe 1993	Succeeded by Daniel Amokachi

	Nigeria squad - 1994 FIFA World Cup
1 Rufai \| 2 Eguavoen \| 3 Iroha \| 4 Keshi \| 5 Okechukwu \| 6 Nwanu \| 7 George \| 8 Oliha \| 9 Yekini \| 10 Okocha \| 11 Amuneke \| 12 Siasia \| 13 Ezeugo \| 14 Amokachi \| 15 Oliseh \| 16 Agu \| 17 Ikpeba \| 18 Ekoku \| 19 Emenalo \| 20 Okafor \| 21 Adepoju \| 22 Agbonavbare \| Coach: Westerhof

	Nigeria squad - 1998 FIFA World Cup
1 Rufai \| 2 Oparaku \| 3 Babayaro \| 4 Kanu \| 5 Okechukwu \| 6 West \| 7 George \| 8 Adepoju \| 9 Yekini \| 10 Okocha \| 11 Lawal \| 12 W. Okpara \| 13 Babangida \| 14 Amokachi \| 15 Oliseh \| 16 Okafor \| 17 Eguavoen \| 18 Oruma \| 19 Iroha \| 20 Ikpeba \| 21 G. Okpara \| 22 Baruwa \| Coach: Milutinović