Chika Wali
FullnameChika Wali
Birth date10 August 1990 (age 36)
Birth placeRiver State, Nigeria
Height1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
PositionCentre back
Clubs 1Pune
Clubs 2United SC
Years 32011–2013
Clubs 3Pune
Caps 342
Goals 32
Years 42013–2014
Clubs 4Salgaocar
Caps 424
Goals 40
Years 52014– 2014
Clubs 5Tuff Laxmi Prasad
Caps 516
Goals 53
Years 62014–2015
Clubs 6Mumbai
Caps 620
Goals 60
Years 72015–2016
Clubs 7Dempo
Caps 710
Goals 70
Years 82016–2019
Clubs 8Ozone FC
Caps 825
Goals 81

Chika Wali Listen is a Nigerian football player who last played as a centre back for Ozone in the I-League 2nd Division.[1]

Career

Early career

From the grounds of River State in Nigeria to Pune, this solidly built Nigerian has come some distance in every sense of the phrase. Chika started playing the game when he was eight beginning with school games and all school tournaments. He was then picked to play for his state where he used to play as a defensive midfielder. Incidentally, Chika, in his early days wanted to be a striker – he loved scoring goals – but a coach said that he would go much further in the game if he played back considering his height and physique. Later a scout spotted him and got him a contract to play for a club in the neighboring country of Benin, a two hours drive from Chika's place in Nigeria. He spent a season there – his first as a professional in the game.

Pune

He came to India as a teenager on the invitation of Pune after a close friend of Chika introduced him to Nigel Empson, a manager in India, who then brought him to the notice of Pune FC leading to his present contract. This is his sixth year in India as a pro.

Wali has been a key part of the PFC team which won promotion to the I-League, and has gone on to establish itself as a major force in Indian football, finishing second in the I-League in season 2012–13(Reference?). Wali has shown character and dedication in his career at PFC.

Ozone FC

On 26 October 2017 Ozone announced the signing of chicka wali for their upcoming I-League 2nd Division campaign. He made his debut for the club in their first group stage match of 2016–17 I-League 2nd Division against Kenkre.[2] However, the club failed to progress to the final round of the league and finished third in their group.[3]

References

  1. ^ "Chika Wali joins Ozone FC Bengaluru". ozonefcbengaluru.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2018. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  2. ^ Cyriac, Biju Babu (21 January 2017). "Ozone squander lead to go down to Kenkre". The Times of India. TNN. Archived 16 April 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  3. ^ "2nd Division I-League : Ozone FC Fail To Qualify For Final Round; Neroca May Too". Feverpitch. 25 February 2017. Archived from the original on 26 July 2018. Retrieved 20 October 2017.