In the first of our new series whereby we focus on those who have played for Chelsea who originate from Africa, I`ve chosen Celestine Babayaro.
Now I`m not sure if Babayaro is the first from the African continent to play for Chelsea but I have to admit that he was the first to make a vivid impression on me, playing down the left-flank with Graeme Le Saux.
The duo complimented each other perfectly, with one pushing forward and the other dropping back, each comfortable in each other`s position.
For Celestine, the journey to becoming a player who would make an impression in the professional game, started in his native Nigeria where he began his career with Plateau United.
In 1994, Celestine took the step of joining the Belgian club, Anderlecht. Although still a teenager, Celestine quickly established himself as a member of Anderlecht`s first team, setting record after record.
One of these records saw Celestine become the youngest player to make an appearance in the Champions League and receive a red card, Celestine was just 16 years and 86 days old when the aforementioned happened in a fixture against Steaua Bucuresti.
In April 1997, having been spotted by a Chelsea scout, Celestine moved to Chelsea with the transfer fee being set at £2.25 million, a club record for a teenager at the time.
Babayaro made his debut for Chelsea in a UEFA Cup Winners Cup tie against Slovan Bratislava but his season was to be cut short when he suffered an injury in the 6-1 thrashing Chelsea handed out to Tottenham Hotspur, a game whereby Tor Andre Flo netted a hat-trick. The injury resulte din the player missing the remainder of the season, meaning the young Nigerian missed out on Chelsea`s victories in the 1998 League Cup Final at Wembley and the 1998 UEFA Cup Winners Cup Final in Stockholm.
Once fit though Celestine established himself in the Chelsea side and his enterprising play and solid defensive work was to see him win medals for Chelsea in the 1998 UEFA Super Cup, the FA Cup and Charity (now Community) Shield in 2000.
Babayaro was also part of the side that reached the 2002 FA Cup Final.
On the Champions League front, Celestine was part of the side that went on a great run in the 1999 / 2000 competition, a run that ended in disappointment when Celestine was sent off in extra-time of the quarter-final second leg, in the Nou Camp, with Barcelona going on to win the tie and claim a semi-final place.
Although goals were scarce for the Nigerian, he`ll always be remembered for his celebratory back-flips, one of which executed in a pre-season friendly resulted in the player picking up an injury.
Babayaro`s Chelsea career ended when he only made a handful of appearances during Jose Mourinho`s first season when Chelsea won the 2004 / 2005 Premier League title, leaving to join Newcastle United in January 2005 with the fee being disclosed as undisclosed.
On the international stage, Babayaro made 27 appearances for Nigeria although his international career ended in controversial style when he, along with alongside Yakubu Aiyegbeni and Victor Agali were sent home from the 2004 African Cup of Nations. Babayaro was never selected for the national tea again, although some pundits suggest he was the best Nigerian full-back to have ever played for his country.
Mini Fact-File – Celestine Babayaro
Full Name – Celestine Hycieth Babayaro
Date of Birth – 29 August 1978
Place of Birth – Kaduna, Nigeria
Position – Left back / left midfielder
Youth Career – Plateau United
Clubs – Anderlecht, Chelsea, Newcastle United, Los Angeles Galaxy
International Career – Nigeria
If you`d like to suggest somebody you`d like us to cover in our African Connection series then simply e-mail the name of the player to JUVENILED40@HOTMAIL.COM and we`ll do the rest.
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