From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mutiu Adepoju as a player for the
Real Madrid veterans during a charity match in Poland.
Mutiu Adepoju (born December 22, 1970 in Ibadan) is a Nigerian former football midfielder who played for several European clubs, mostly in Spain, in the 1990s and 2000s and was a member of the Nigeria national team in three World Cups. Mutiu was a member of the Nigerian team that played in the 1989 World Youth Tournament (Saudi 89). His brace against the USA in the semifinals ensured that Nigeria got to the finals, where they lost to a star-studded Portuguese side.
He left Nigeria in 1989 to join Castilla CF, Real Madrid's reserve team. He was transferred to first division club Racing Santander, where he was a regular. He eventually left Santander for Real Sociedad, a larger club, but it gradually became problematic for Adepoju to retain a first team place. After leaving Sociedad he played for different clubs, but never settled and retired after the 2003/04 season.
Adepoju, nicknamed "the headmaster", played at least 49 international matches and scored 5 goals for the Nigeria national team. He made his debut for the national team against Togo in August 1990, but his breakthrough at international level came during the 1992 African Nations Cup. He also helped Nigeria win the 1994 African Nations Cup.
He was part of the squads for the Football World Cups in 1994, 1998 and 2002 (although he did not play in the latter tournament). After retirement, he returned to Nigeria to be the Chief Administrator for Shooting Stars.
[edit] Playing career
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