Julius Aghahowa
| Date of birth | 12 February 1982 |
| Place of birth | Benin City |
| Nationality | Nigerian |
| Weight | 72 kg |
| Height | 1.82 m |
| Position | Forward |
His early club football was spent with his local team Bendel Insurance.
He made his name at the African and the World Youth Championships in 1999 after which he was snapped up to play in Tunisia for Esperance in the close season of 1999, where they reached the African Champions League Final.
He moved to Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk for a £6 million fee in 2000.
This young striker made his name in the 2000 African Nations' Cup finals, netting on his debut against Morocco and then two late goals in the quarter final against Senegal to help the Super Eagle to victory.
He was only a substitute in the final, when Nigeria lost out to Cameroon on penalties, but went on to play in all four games in the Sydney Olympics, scoring in the 3-2 win over Australia.
He is a talented forward who tends to play on the left hand side of the attack.
Julius opened the scoring in Nigeria's 2-1 World Cup Group F defeat by Sweden - quickly followed by his trademark seven somersault celebration.
Club history
| Team | Joined | Left | Loan / Trialist |
|---|---|---|---|
| Esperance Sportive de Tunis | 01 Jul 1999 | 01 Jan 2001 | |
| Shakhtar Donetsk | 01 Jan 2001 | 30 Jan 2007 | |
| Wigan Athletic | 30 Jan 2007 | 30 Jun 2008 | |
| Kayserispor | 01 Jul 2008 | 01 Jul 2009 | |
| Shakhtar Donetsk | 01 Jul 2009 |
Club stats
| Season | Team | Competition | Apps | Subs | Goals | Y | R |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001-02 | Shakhtar Donetsk | UEFA Champions League | 4 | 2 |
|||
| 2001-02 | Shakhtar Donetsk | UEFA Cup | 2 | ||||
| 2004-05 | Shakhtar Donetsk | UEFA Champions League | 2 | ||||
| 2006-07 | Wigan Athletic | Premier League | 3 | 3 |
|||
| 2007-08 | Wigan Athletic | FA Cup | 2 |
1
|
|||
| 2007-08 | Wigan Athletic | League Cup | 1 |
||||
| 2007-08 | Wigan Athletic | Premier League | 2 | 12 |
2
|
||
| 2009-10 | Shakhtar Donetsk | UEFA Super Cup | 1 |
Please note: Career stats are based on performances in the Premier and Football Leagues and (in most cases all) internationals.
Club matches
| Date | Match | Result | Competition | Round | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 Jul 2001 | Shakhtar Donetsk v Lugano | D | 0-0 | UEFA Champions League | 2nd qualifying round 1st leg |
| 31 Jul 2001 | Lugano v Shakhtar Donetsk | D |
0-0 Agg: 0-0 |
UEFA Champions League | 2nd qualifying round 2nd leg |
| 07 Aug 2001 | Shakhtar Donetsk v Borussia Dortmund | D | 0-0 | UEFA Champions League | 3rd qualifying round 1st leg |
| 22 Aug 2001 | Borussia Dortmund v Shakhtar Donetsk | D |
0-0 Agg: 0-0 |
UEFA Champions League | 3rd qualifying round 2nd leg |
| 20 Sep 2001 | CSKA Sofiya v Shakhtar Donetsk | D | 0-0 | UEFA Cup | 1st round 1st leg |
| 27 Sep 2001 | Shakhtar Donetsk v CSKA Sofiya | D |
0-0 Agg: 0-0 |
UEFA Cup | 1st round 2nd leg |
| 20 Oct 2004 | Shakhtar Donetsk v Celtic | D | 0-0 | UEFA Champions League | Group F |
| 02 Nov 2004 | Celtic v Shakhtar Donetsk | D | 0-0 | UEFA Champions League | Group F |
| 28 Aug 2009 | Barcelona v Shakhtar Donetsk | L | 1-0 | UEFA Super Cup | Final |
Please note: Match history is complete for the Premier and Football Leagues and (in most cases all) internationals.
International stats
| Season | Team | Competition | Apps | Subs | Goals | Y | R |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998-99 | Nigeria | Olympics | 2 | ||||
| 1998-99 | Nigeria | World Youth Cup | 3 | 1 |
1 |
2
|
|
| 1999-00 | Nigeria | Africa Cup of Nations | 4 |
3 |
|||
| 1999-00 | Nigeria | Olympics | 1 | 2 |
|||
| 2000-01 | Nigeria | FIFA World Cup | 1 | 1 |
1
|
||
| 2000-01 | Nigeria | Olympics | 4 | 1 |
2
|
||
| 2001-02 | Nigeria | Africa Cup of Nations | 5 | 3 |
1
|
1
|
|
| 2001-02 | Nigeria | FIFA World Cup | 4 | 2 |
1
|
||
| 2001-02 | Nigeria | International Friendly | 3 | 3 |
|||
| 2002-03 | Nigeria | Africa Cup of Nations | 1 | ||||
| 2003-04 | Nigeria | Africa Cup of Nations | 3 |
1
|
|||
| 2004-05 | Nigeria | FIFA World Cup | 2 | 1 |
2 |
1
|
|
| 2005-06 | Nigeria | Africa Cup of Nations | 2 | 1 |
|||
| 2005-06 | Nigeria | FIFA World Cup | 1 |
||||
| 2006-07 | Nigeria | International Friendly | 1 |
Please note: Career stats are based on performances in the Premier and Football Leagues and (in most cases all) internationals.
International matches
| Date | Match | Result | Competition | Round | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 03 Apr 1999 | Nigeria v Costa Rica | D | 1-1 | World Youth Cup | Finals Group A |
| 07 Apr 1999 | Nigeria v Germany | W | 2-0 | World Youth Cup | Finals Group A |
| 10 Apr 1999 | Nigeria v Paraguay | L | 1-2 | World Youth Cup | Finals Group A |
| 18 Apr 1999 | Mali v Nigeria | L | 3-1 | World Youth Cup | Quarter-final |
| 13 Jun 1999 | Nigeria v Namibia | W | 4-0 | Olympics | Africa 1st round |
| 20 Jun 1999 | Namibia v Nigeria | L | 3-2 | Olympics | Africa 1st round |
| 03 Feb 2000 | Nigeria v Morocco | W | 2-0 | Africa Cup of Nations | Group D |
| 07 Feb 2000 | Nigeria v Senegal | W | 2-1 | Africa Cup of Nations | Quarter-final |
| 10 Feb 2000 | Nigeria v South Africa | W | 2-0 | Africa Cup of Nations | Semi-final |
| 13 Feb 2000 | Nigeria v Cameroon | L | 2-2 (3-4) | Africa Cup of Nations | Final |
| 19 Feb 2000 | Uganda v Nigeria | W | 2-3 | Olympics | Africa group A |
| 13 Sep 2000 | Nigeria v Honduras | D | 3-3 | Olympics | Finals Group A |
| 16 Sep 2000 | Australia v Nigeria | W | 2-3 | Olympics | Finals Group A |
| 19 Sep 2000 | Italy v Nigeria | D | 1-1 | Olympics | Finals Group A |
| 23 Sep 2000 | Chile v Nigeria | L | 4-1 | Olympics | Quarter-final |
| 10 Mar 2001 | Ghana v Nigeria | D | 0-0 | FIFA World Cup | Africa group B |
| 21 Apr 2001 | Sierra Leone v Nigeria | L | 1-0 | FIFA World Cup | Africa group B |
| 01 Jul 2001 | Sudan v Nigeria | W | 0-4 | FIFA World Cup | Africa group B |
| 12 Jan 2002 | Ivory Coast v Nigeria | D | 1-1 | International Friendly | |
| 21 Jan 2002 | Algeria v Nigeria | W | 0-1 | Africa Cup of Nations | Finals Group A |
| 24 Jan 2002 | Mali v Nigeria | D | 0-0 | Africa Cup of Nations | Finals Group A |
| 28 Jan 2002 | Liberia v Nigeria | W | 0-1 | Africa Cup of Nations | Finals Group A |
| 03 Feb 2002 | Nigeria v Ghana | W | 1-0 | Africa Cup of Nations | Finals quarter-final |
| 07 Feb 2002 | Nigeria v Senegal | L | 1-2 | Africa Cup of Nations | Finals semi-final |
| 17 Apr 2002 | Scotland v Nigeria | W | 1-2 | International Friendly | |
| 16 May 2002 | Republic of Ireland v Nigeria | W | 1-2 | International Friendly | |
| 02 Jun 2002 | Argentina v Nigeria | L | 1-0 | FIFA World Cup | Finals group F |
| 07 Jun 2002 | Sweden v Nigeria | L | 2-1 | FIFA World Cup | Finals group F |
| 12 Jun 2002 | Nigeria v England | D | 0-0 | FIFA World Cup | Finals group F |
| 08 Sep 2002 | Angola v Nigeria | D | 0-0 | Africa Cup of Nations | Group 1 |
| 27 Jan 2004 | Nigeria v Morocco | L | 0-1 | Africa Cup of Nations | Finals Group D |
| 31 Jan 2004 | Nigeria v South Africa | W | 4-0 | Africa Cup of Nations | Finals Group D |
| 04 Feb 2004 | Benin v Nigeria | W | 1-2 | Africa Cup of Nations | Finals Group D |
| 03 Jul 2004 | Nigeria v Algeria | W | 1-0 | FIFA World Cup | Africa group 4 |
| 05 Sep 2004 | Zimbabwe v Nigeria | W | 0-3 | FIFA World Cup | Africa group 4 |
| 26 Mar 2005 | Nigeria v Gabon | W | 2-0 | FIFA World Cup | Africa group 4 |
| 07 Oct 2005 | Nigeria v Zimbabwe | W | 5-1 | FIFA World Cup | Africa group 4 |
| 23 Jan 2006 | Nigeria v Ghana | W | 1-0 | Africa Cup of Nations | Group D |
| 27 Jan 2006 | Nigeria v Zimbabwe | W | 2-0 | Africa Cup of Nations | Group D |
| 07 Feb 2006 | Nigeria v Ivory Coast | L | 0-1 | Africa Cup of Nations | Semi-final |
| 06 Feb 2007 | Ghana v Nigeria | L | 4-1 | International Friendly | |
Please note: Match history is complete for the Premier and Football Leagues and (in most cases all) internationals.