Victor Mugubi Wanyama
(Kenyan English: [ˈvɪktɜ
muˈɡubiː
wɑˈɲɑːmɑ];
born 25 June 1991) is a Kenyan professional footballer who plays as a defensive
midfielder for Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur and captains the Kenya
national team. On the field, Wanyama is known for his sportsmanship and
leadership qualities.Wanyama became the first ever Kenyan player to score in
the UEFA Champions League when he scored the first goal in Celtic's 2–1 win
over Barcelona on 7 November 2012. On 11 July 2013, Wanyama moved to Premier
League club Southampton for £12.5 million making him the most expensive player
sold by a Scottish club, surpassing the £9.5 million Russian club Spartak
Moscow paid for Aiden McGeady in 2010.He has earned over 40 caps for the Kenyan
national team since making his international debut in May 2007 at the age of
15.
Wanyama attended
Kamukunji High School, which fields a successful football team. Upon leaving
High School, he also played with JMJ Academy for three years during which time
he also joined Kenyan Premier League clubs Nairobi City Stars and AFC Leopards.
In 2007 he joined Allsvenskan club Helsingborg but after the departure of his
brother McDonald Mariga to Serie A side Parma in 2008, Wanyama returned to
Kenya.
After a successful
trial, Wanyama signed for Beerschot AC on a four-year contract in summer 2008.
He made his debut in a League match at the end of the 2008–09 season. In
September 2009, he was fined €100 and given a three-match suspension for a
violent tackle on Matias Suarez of Anderlecht.
In the summer of 2010
Scottish Premier League club Celtic attempted to sign Wanyama but Beerschot did
not allow him to leave. Russian club CSKA Moscow also attempted to sign him,
but they failed as well.
Wanyama scored his
first goal for Beerschot on 11 December 2010, a 77th-minute equaliser against
Westerlo. In April 2011, he received another three match suspension after video
evidence showed he had elbowed Brecht Dejaeghere of K.V. Kortrijk.
On 9 July 2011,
Wanyama finally completed a £900,000 move to Celtic from Beerschot AC, after
the Scottish club had failed to sign him the previous year. He signed a
four-year contract and in doing so became the first ever Kenyan to play in the
SPL. Wanyama chose 67 as his squad number to honour the Lisbon Lions, Celtic's
1967 European Cup winning team. Wanyama made his Celtic league debut in a 1–0
loss to St Johnstone on 21 August 2011. He played in central defence rather
than his favoured central midfield role. He came on as a late substitute in a
4–0 win over Motherwell, and played for the whole second half in a 2–0 League
Cup win over Ross County. On 29 September 2011, he started in Celtic's 1–1 draw
with Italian team Udinese in the Europa League. This was his first European
match for the club. On 10 December 2011, Wanyama scored his first goal for
Celtic in a 1–0 win over Hearts at Celtic Park, a tremendous 25-yard strike
which hit the top corner. His performances during December earned him the
Scottish Premier League young player of the month award. He scored his second
Celtic goal on 2 January 2012 in a 3–0 win against Dunfermline at East End
Park. Wanyama scored in Celtic's 2–1 win against Dundee United at Celtic Park
and in the 4–0 victory against Hearts at Tynecastle.
In October 2012,
Wanyama scored twice against St Mirren at Saint Mirren Park, the second of
which was a half volley from 25 yards out.
On 25 October 2012,
Wanyama's agent released a statement saying that he had turned down an improved
contract offer from Celtic, stating that his wage demands could not be met by
the club amid speculation of interest from clubs in England. On 7 November,
Wanyama opened the scoring with a powerful header as Celtic shocked Barcelona
in the Champions League group stage, by beating them 2–1 at Celtic Park.
After much
speculation and a previous breakdown in talks, on 11 July 2013, Wanyama signed
for Premier League side Southampton for a fee claimed to be £12.5 million,
making him the first Kenyan to ever play in the Premier League.
Wanyama said:
He made his debut on
17 August 2013, in 1–0 away win against West Bromwich Albion. Wanyama made 24
appearances in his first season, but injuries hindered his efforts to make much
of an impact in the team.
Under new manager
Ronald Koeman, Wanyama came into his own in the 2014–15 season. He scored his
first goal for the club in a 1–0 league victory over Swansea City at the
Liberty Stadium on 20 September 2014, after replacing James Ward-Prowse in the
69th minute. His next goal came in an 8–0 trouncing of Sunderland on 19 October
2014. Wanyama would score his third goal for the Saints in spectacular fashion,
a 40-yard shot after Eldin Jakupović's poor clearance fell straight to him, in
what proved to be the only goal in a win over Hull City. His performances saw
him awarded the league's African Player of the Month for September, with him
stating "It is wonderful being recognised as someone who has done well for
his club."
On 23 June 2016,
Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur announced that they had reached an
agreement with Southampton for the transfer of Wanyama, signing a five-year
contract for a fee of £11 million. Wanyama had previously worked with Tottenham
manager Mauricio Pochettino who brought him to Southampton in July 2013.
Wanyama scored his first goal for the club on his home debut against Crystal
Palace, in the 82nd minute of a 1–0 league win for Spurs. The goal made him the
138th different player to score for the club, extending its record for the most
variety of goalscorers for a single club in the Premier League.
Wanyama made his
debut for the Kenyan national team in May 2007, aged just 15 in a friendly
against Nigeria. He also played in all six of Kenya's 2010 FIFA World Cup
qualifiers. He became the captain of his national team in 2013.
Personal life
Wanyama comes from a
sporting family. His brother McDonald Mariga is also a professional footballer,
while his other brothers Thomas and Sylvester Wanyama are also footballers in
the Kenyan Premier League. His father, Noah Wanyama, was a footballer for
A.F.C. Leopards in the 1980s, and his sister Mercy is a professional basketball
player in the USA.
Wanyama is managed by
ExtraTime, and has a boot sponsorship deal with Adidas.
In 2015, Wanyama
participated in the production of a short film about soccer in Kenya called
Mdudu Boy, written and directed by actress Ella Smith.
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