Oguchi Onyewu

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Lore & Background

Onyewu grew up in the Washington, D.C. suburbs of Silver Spring and Olney, Maryland, where he attended St. Andrew Apostle School and Sherwood High School. He enrolled in the U.S. residency program in Bradenton, Florida, before returning to Sherwood to graduate. He then played two years of college soccer at Clemson University in South Carolina. He moved to Europe in 2002, signing with Metz of Ligue 2 in France. In 2003, he was loaned out to La Louvière in Belgium. Onyewu was loaned to Standard Liège in 2004, and the move was made permanent for the 2004–05 season. After the season, he was named to the Belgian league's Best XI as well as Foreign Player of the Year for 2005. He completed a loan deal with Newcastle United in January 2007, covering the remainder of the 2006–07 season. He made his debut for Newcastle against Fulham on February 3, and his home debut a week later in a 2–1 victory over Liverpool. Following the arrival of new manager Sam Allardyce, Onyewu fell out of favor, and Newcastle decided not to make the loan deal permanent. Onyewu returned to Standard, making his 100th Belgian First Division appearance on March 14, 2008, and was an integral part of the club as they won the 2007–08 Belgian First Division. After the season, he was named to the Belgian league Best XI for the second time. He led the Standard defense to a second consecutive Belgian league title in 2008–09. Onyewu dealt with racism during his time in Belgium, including an incident where Anderlecht defender Jelle Van Damme allegedly repeatedly called him a 'dirty ape.' Onyewu's lawyer announced he was suing Van Damme; the case was withdrawn in February 2011 after Van Damme apologized.

In Their Own Story

Onyewu signed a three-year contract with A.C. Milan in July 2009, but never played a league game in his eighteen-month spell at the club. He made his debut on September 30 as a substitute in a Champions League loss to Zürich at San Siro. Onyewu missed all the 2009–10 season due to a knee injury suffered while on national team duty. On November 5, 2010, Onyewu and teammate Zlatan Ibrahimović engaged in a fight during training; it was reported that Onyewu suffered a reckless tackle from Ibrahimović, causing Onyewu to confront him. In January 2011, Onyewu joined Dutch side Twente on loan until the end of the season. He made his debut on January 19 against Heracles Almelo, playing the full 90 minutes. His stint with Twente saw him accumulate 14 appearances and pick up a cup winners medal after Twente defeated Ajax 3–2 in the KNVB Cup final. In June 2011, Onyewu joined Portuguese side Sporting CP on a free transfer, signing a three-year deal. He scored his first goal for Sporting CP against Rio Ave on September 19, scoring the winning goal from a header after a Diego Capel corner kick. He was loaned to Spanish La Liga outfit Málaga in August 2012, making his team debut on October 24 in a Champions League match as a substitute in a 1–0 victory over his former side A.C. Milan. Onyewu returned to Sporting in summer 2013 but agreed to a contract termination by mutual consent. In October 2013, he signed with Queens Park Rangers but failed to make any appearances. In January 2014, Onyewu joined Sheffield Wednesday until the end of the season. In October 2014, he signed for Charlton Athletic on a short-term contract, making his debut as a substitute on December 26. He was released following the conclusion of the season. Onyewu signed with the Philadelphia Union during the 2017 MLS preseason, earning 22 appearances and scoring once. He was released at the conclusion of the 2017 season. In September 2018, Onyewu announced his retirement from professional soccer via Instagram.

Reader's Guide

Onyewu was a mainstay on the United States national team for the 2006 and 2010 World Cup cycles. He made his first appearance for the senior national team on October 13, 2004, against Panama. Onyewu scored his first international goal in the 2005 Gold Cup, nodding home the extra time winner in the semifinal against Honduras, and was later named to the tournament Best XI. He played for the United States in the 2006 World Cup, starting in all three United States games. Just before halftime of the third and final group stage match against Ghana, Onyewu conceded a penalty. He earned over 60 caps with the United States men's national soccer team and played for the United States at the 2006 and 2010 World Cups.

Did You Know?

• Onyewu was named Foreign Player of the Year in Belgium in 2005.
• He never played a league game in his eighteen-month spell at A.C. Milan.
• Onyewu and Zlatan Ibrahimović engaged in a fight during training in November 2010.
• He won the KNVB Cup with Twente in 2011, defeating Ajax 3–2 in the final.
• Onyewu announced his retirement from professional soccer via Instagram in September 2018.