Efe Ambrose facts for kids
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 18 October 1988 | ||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Kaduna, Nigeria | ||||||||||||
| Height | 1.90 m | ||||||||||||
| Playing position | Defender | ||||||||||||
| Club information | |||||||||||||
| Current club | Workington | ||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||
| 2002–2006 | Kaduna United | ||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | ||||||||||
| 2006–2010 | Kaduna United | 89 | (7) | ||||||||||
| 2008–2009 | → Bayelsa United (loan) | 24 | (4) | ||||||||||
| 2010–2012 | Ashdod | 67 | (3) | ||||||||||
| 2012–2017 | Celtic | 113 | (5) | ||||||||||
| 2017 | → Hibernian (loan) | 10 | (1) | ||||||||||
| 2017–2019 | Hibernian | 59 | (2) | ||||||||||
| 2019 | Derby County | 0 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 2020–2021 | Livingston | 25 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 2021–2022 | St Johnstone | 7 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 2022 | → Dunfermline Athletic (loan) | 12 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 2022–2023 | Greenock Morton | 11 | (1) | ||||||||||
| 2023–2024 | Queen of the South | 26 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 2024 | Bury | 7 | (1) | ||||||||||
| 2024– | Workington | 25 | (1) | ||||||||||
| National team‡ | |||||||||||||
| 2007 | Nigeria U20 | 4 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 2008 | Nigeria U23 | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 2008–2016 | Nigeria | 51 | (4) | ||||||||||
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Honours
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† Appearances (Goals). |
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Efetobore Eric Ambrose Emuobo (born on 18 October 1988) is a Nigerian professional footballer. He plays as a defender for the club Workington. Ambrose has played for many clubs, including Kaduna United and Bayelsa United in Nigeria. He also played for Ashdod in Israel. In Scotland, he played for Celtic, Hibernian, Livingston, St Johnstone, and Dunfermline Athletic. He also played for Greenock Morton and Derby County in England.
Ambrose has also played for the Nigeria national football team. He has represented his country in big tournaments. These include the FIFA Under-20 World Cup, the Summer Olympics, the Africa Cup of Nations, and the FIFA World Cup.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Starting His Journey
Ambrose began his football career in 2006. He started with Kaduna United in Nigeria. Two years later, he was loaned to Bayelsa United. He helped Kaduna United get promoted.
Playing in Israel
In June 2010, Ambrose moved to Israel. He joined Israeli Premier League club FC Ashdod. He played there until 2012.
Time with Celtic
Ambrose joined Scottish Premier League club Celtic in 2012. He signed a three-year contract. He quickly felt at home in Glasgow. He even watched British football games to prepare.
He played his first game for Celtic on 22 September 2012. It was a 2–0 win against Dundee. He scored his first goal for Celtic on 20 October 2012. It was in a big 5–0 win against St Mirren. He celebrated with a cool quadruple somersault!
Ambrose also played in the Champions League. He played a full game in a 3–2 win against Spartak Moscow. On 7 November 2012, Celtic had a famous 2–1 win against Barcelona. Ambrose said it was the perfect way to celebrate Celtic's 125th anniversary.
Celtic made it to the Champions League knock-out stages. They played against Juventus. Ambrose played in the first game. He had just won the Africa Cup of Nations with Nigeria. He scored a goal in a 6–2 win against Dundee United. He scored again three days later against St Johnstone.
Later, Ambrose faced some tough times at Celtic. In 2016, he almost moved to Standard Liège. In 2017, a loan move to Blackburn Rovers didn't happen.
Moving to Hibernian
On 28 February 2017, Ambrose joined Hibernian on loan. He scored his first goal for Hibs on 25 March. It was in a 2–1 win against Falkirk. He won the player of the month award for March 2017.
After his loan, Ambrose signed a two-year contract with Hibernian. He left the club in January 2019.
Short Spell at Derby County
In February 2019, Ambrose joined EFL Championship club Derby County. He signed a short-term contract. He was released by Derby County at the end of the 2018–19 season.
Playing for Livingston
After some months without a club, Ambrose signed for Livingston in February 2020. He played for them until May 2021.
Time with St Johnstone
In September 2021, Ambrose signed with Scottish Premiership team St Johnstone.
Loan to Dunfermline
On 4 February 2022, Ambrose went on loan. He joined Scottish Championship side Dunfermline Athletic. He stayed there until the end of the 2021–22 season.
Joining Greenock Morton
Ambrose signed for Greenock Morton on 26 October 2022. He played until the end of the season. He made his debut against Inverness Caledonian Thistle. He was named man of the match in a 4–0 victory. He scored one goal for Morton. He left the club after his contract ended.
Queen of the South
On 25 July 2023, Ambrose signed for Queen of the South. He played there until 31 December 2023.
Bury and Workington
On 8 June 2024, Ambrose joined Bury. He left Bury on 23 August 2024.
On 26 August 2024, Ambrose joined Workington. He is currently playing for them.
International Career
Ambrose played for the Nigeria national under-20 football team. He was part of the team at the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup. He also played for Nigeria U-23. He played two games at the 2008 Summer Olympics.
He was chosen for Nigeria's team for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations. Ambrose played in five out of six games. He played in the final, which Nigeria won. After the tournament, he was named in the Team of the Tournament. Ambrose said winning the Africa Cup of Nations was a huge achievement.
He was also selected for Nigeria's squad at the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup and the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
How He Plays
Ambrose often plays as a defensive midfielder for Nigeria. He can also play as a centre back or right back. He is known for being calm when he has the ball. He often does a somersault after scoring a goal!
Career Statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Ashdod | 2010–11 | Israeli Premier League | 31 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 39 | 1 | |
| 2011–12 | Israeli Premier League | 35 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | — | 40 | 4 | ||
| 2012–13 | Israeli Premier League | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | ||
| Total | 67 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 6 | 2 | — | 83 | 5 | |||
| Celtic | 2012–13 | Scottish Premier League | 27 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 41 | 3 |
| 2013–14 | Scottish Premiership | 38 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 51 | 3 | |
| 2014–15 | Scottish Premiership | 27 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 43 | 0 | |
| 2015–16 | Scottish Premiership | 21 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 31 | 0 | |
| 2016–17 | Scottish Premiership | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 113 | 5 | 12 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 36 | 1 | 168 | 6 | ||
| Hibernian (loan) | 2016–17 | Scottish Championship | 10 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 1 |
| Hibernian | 2017–18 | Scottish Premiership | 38 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | — | 45 | 3 | |
| 2018–19 | Scottish Premiership | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 29 | 2 | |
| Total | 59 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 74 | 5 | ||
| Derby County | 2018–19 | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| Livingston | 2019–20 | Scottish Premiership | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | |
| 2020–21 | Scottish Premiership | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | 28 | 0 | ||
| Total | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | 31 | 0 | |||
| St Johnstone | 2021–22 | Scottish Premiership | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Career total | 274 | 11 | 25 | 0 | 27 | 3 | 42 | 3 | 368 | 17 | ||
International Appearances
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nigeria | 2008 | 1 | 0 |
| 2009 | — | ||
| 2010 | — | ||
| 2011 | 10 | 0 | |
| 2012 | 5 | 1 | |
| 2013 | 17 | 0 | |
| 2014 | 13 | 1 | |
| 2015 | 3 | 2 | |
| 2016 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 51 | 4 | |
International Goals
- Scores and results list Nigeria's goal tally first.
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 13 October 2012 | U.J. Esuene Stadium, Calabar, Nigeria |  Liberia |
1–0 | 6–1 | 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 2. | 6 September 2014 | U.J. Esuene Stadium, Calabar, Nigeria |  Congo |
1–0 | 2–3 | 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 3. | 11 October 2015 | Edmond Machtens Stadium, Brussels, Belgium |  Cameroon |
1–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 4. | 17 November 2015 | Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium, Port Harcourt, Nigeria |  Swaziland |
2–0 | 2–0 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Honours and Awards
Bayelsa
- Nigerian Premier League: 2008–09
Kaduna United
- Nigerian FA Cup: 2010
Celtic
- Scottish Premiership: 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16
- Scottish Cup: 2012–13
- Scottish League Cup: 2014–15
Hibernian
- Scottish Championship: 2016–17
Nigeria
Individual Awards
- UEFA Champions League Team of the Week: (Week 3, 2012–13)
- Africa Cup of Nations Team of the Tournament: 2013
Special Recognition
Member of the Order of the Niger
See also
In Spanish: Efe Ambrose para niños
