Peter Utaka
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Peter Maduabuchi Utaka | ||
| Date of birth | 12 February 1984 | ||
| Place of birth | Enugu, Nigeria | ||
| Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 9 1⁄2 in) | ||
| Playing position | Forward | ||
| Club information | |||
|
Current team
|
FC Tokyo | ||
| Number | 9 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1997 | UNTH Nigeria | ||
| 1999–2000 | Dinamo Zagreb | ||
| 2000–2004 | UNTH Nigeria | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2003–2004 | Maasmechelen | 35 | (17) |
| 2004–2007 | Westerlo | 73 | (12) |
| 2007–2008 | Royal Antwerp | 46 | (26) |
| 2008–2012 | OB | 108 | (52) |
| 2012–2013 | Dalian Aerbin | 43 | (27) |
| 2013–2014 | Beijing Guoan | 25 | (8) |
| 2014 | → Shanghai Shenxin (loan) | 12 | (2) |
| 2015–2016 | Shimizu S-Pulse | 28 | (9) |
| 2016 | → Sanfrecce Hiroshima (loan) | 33 | (19) |
| 2017– | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | ||
| 2017– | → FC Tokyo (loan) | ||
| National team | |||
| 2010–2011 | Nigeria | 7 | (3) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 15:33, 1 April 2015 (UTC). |
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Peter Maduabuchi Utaka (born 12 February 1984 in Enugu) is a Nigerian footballer with a Belgian passport currently playing for FC Tokyo on loan from Japanese club Sanfrecce Hiroshima. He is the younger brother of John Utaka.
Utaka moved to Croatia as a 16-year-old to play in Dinamo Zagreb after trying his luck at Ismaily where his older brother John was a cult figure and in the United Arab Emirates. In 2003 he moved to Belgium from Dinamo and signed for K. Patro Eisden Maasmechelen of the 2nd division. KVC Westerlo moved to sign him the following season, and in his first season in the top flight and the transfer was worth 250 000 euro.
He joined Royal Antwerp FC in January 2007 where he became a first team regular, and he helped Antwerp qualify for the playoffs, finishing second. He also emerged top scorer with 22 goals and capped hs glorious season, winning the Best Striker's Award. He also put more gloss on his breath-taking performance that season, claiming the Most Valuable Player's award over eight times, making him one of the most feared strikers in Belgium. On 30 August 2008, it was announced that Utaka would join Danish club OB. for an undisclosed fee.
Utaka joined Danish side OB in 2008. In his first season, he finished joint fourth place on the scorers list, while he led all scorers in his second season. He finished with 18 goals in 33 matches, the first time in five years an OB player was top scorer in the league (last was Steffen Højer in 2004–05 with 20 goals). His Danish team- OB included also two former Manchester United players- Roy Carroll and Eric Djemba-Djemba and another former French international player- Bernard Mendy.
In January 2012, Utaka moved to Chinese Super League club Dalian Aerbin. He scored 20 goals in 28 games in his first season, playing alongside former Barcelona players such as Fabio Rochemback and Seydou Keita, as well as former Australian International player Mille Sterjovski and former PSG player Guillaume Hoarau. He also scored 11 consecutive fixtures to establish a new C-league record.He transferred to Beijing Guoan on 9 July 2013 in 2M Euro transfer. That made him the most expensive international signing in the history of the club. He also played with former Sevilla and Mali captain- Freddy Kanoute. Utaka made 15 goals in 35 appearances in all competitions for the club, before he was loaned to Shanghai Shenxin during summer transfers in 2014, managing to score only four times in thirteen appearances in all competition for the Shanghai outfit.
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