Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 23:45, 5 April 2021

Emilio Nsue

Emilio Nsue with Birmingham City in 2017
Personal information
Full name	Emilio Nsue López
Date of birth	(1989-09-30) 30 September 1989 (age 35)
Place of birth	Palma, Majorca, Spain
Height	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s)	Right back
Team information
Current team	APOEL
Number	22
Youth career
	Atlético Baleares
2004–2006	Mallorca
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2006–2008	Mallorca B	55	(26)
2008–2014	Mallorca	142	(13)
2008–2009	→ Castellón (loan)	38	(7)
2009–2010	→ Real Sociedad (loan)	33	(5)
2014–2017	Middlesbrough	70	(3)
2017–2018	Birmingham City	36	(1)
2018–2019	APOEL	26	(10)
2019–2020	Apollon Limassol	14	(1)
2020–	APOEL	22	(3)
International career
2005	Spain U16	3	(3)
2005–2006	Spain U17	9	(5)
2006–2008	Spain U19	21	(7)
2009	Spain U20	10	(4)
2009–2011	Spain U21	8	(1)
2013–	Equatorial Guinea	24	(12)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21:01, 10 February 2021 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 25 March 2021

Emilio Nsue López (born 30 September 1989) is an Equatoguinean professional footballer who plays for Cypriot First Division club APOEL and captains the Equatorial Guinea national team. A versatile player, he plays mainly as a right back but also can play as a winger and forward.

He began his career at Mallorca, where he appeared in 153 competitive games and four La Liga seasons, and spent time on loan at Real Sociedad and Castellón. In 2014, he joined English club Middlesbrough, and helped them gain promotion to the Premier League in 2016. He signed for Birmingham City in January 2017, and a year later joined Cypriot club APOEL.

Nsue represented Spain, the country of his birth, at youth level, winning European championships at under-19 level in 2007 and under-21 level in 2011. In 2013, he made his senior international debut for Equatorial Guinea, his father's country, and two years later represented the nation at the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations.

Club career

Mallorca

Nsue was born in Palma, Majorca, in the Balearic Islands, and began his football career as a forward in the youth system of RCD Mallorca. He made his professional debut for the club on 3 February 2008, playing the last few minutes of a 1–1 draw at Villarreal. He added a few more minutes the following week, in a goalless home draw with Almería.

For 2008–09, Nsue was loaned to Castellón of the Segunda División. Regularly used in a comfortable campaign for the Valencians, he scored twice in a 4–1 win at home to Levante on 18 October 2008.

Nsue joined another second-tier club, Real Sociedad, on loan for the 2009–10 season. Although rarely a starter, he was an important member of the attack as the Basque team returned to La Liga after a three-year absence.

Nsue returned to Mallorca for 2010–11 and began the season in the starting eleven, the first match being a 0–0 home draw with Real Madrid. On 3 October 2010 he scored his first competitive goal for the club, heading in from a corner in a 1–1 draw at Barcelona. He appeared in all 38 league games and netted four times as his team narrowly avoided relegation.

In 2011–12 Nsue played in several matches as an attacking right back, and totalled nearly 2,000 minutes of action (20 starts) to help Mallorca rank eighth. After conversations with manager Joaquín Caparrós during pre-season, it was agreed that he would start the following campaign in that position.

Middlesbrough

On 1 August 2014, Nsue joined English Football League Championship club Middlesbrough, signing a three-year contract as a free agent. He was signed by Aitor Karanka, who knew him from the Spanish youth set-up. Eight days later he made his debut, coming on as a substitute for Albert Adomah for the last 23 minutes of a 2–0 win over Birmingham City at the Riverside Stadium. On 12 August he made his first start, playing the whole of a 3–0 win at Oldham Athletic in the first round of the 2014–15 League Cup.

Boro reached the play-off final at Wembley on 25 May 2015. They lost 2–0 to Norwich City, and Nsue played the second half in place of Dean Whitehead after both goals had already been conceded. Despite Karanka's insistence that the player would only be used in defence as an emergency procedure, he played much of his second season at right back. On 28 November 2015, he scored his first goal in English football to complete a 2–0 win at Huddersfield Town. On 15 December, he netted the only goal of a home win over Burnley that put Middlesbrough top of the table.

Nsue played 37 of 46 league games in 2015–16 as Boro achieved automatic promotion to the Premier League. He played the first three undefeated matches in the top flight, before being dropped for Antonio Barragán.

Birmingham City

Nsue signed a three-and-a-half-year contract with Birmingham City of the Championship on 18 January 2017; the fee, officially undisclosed, was believed by the Birmingham Mail to be £1m with a further £1m in add-ons. He made his debut in the starting eleven for the league visit to Norwich City on 28 January, playing at right back; Birmingham lost 2–0. He was an unused substitute for the next match, but appeared in every match thereafter, and "single-handedly tred to drag Blues up the pitch" in the final fixture of the season, away to Bristol City, which his team needed to win to avoid relegation. His only goal of the campaign came against Queens Park Rangers on 18 February in stoppage time in a 4–1 home defeat. Changes of management and personnel, and the need to stabilise a struggling team, meant Nsue was no longer a first choice in the 2017–18 side. He played regularly under Harry Redknapp's management in the early part of the season, but Steve Cotterill preferred the more defensive Maxime Colin at right back, and in the January 2018 transfer window, Nsue was allowed to leave.

Cyprus

Nsue signed a two-and-a-half-year deal with Cypriot First Division champions APOEL in January 2018; the fee was undisclosed. He went straight into the starting eleven for the visit to Doxa on 14 January; his headed goal after 26 minutes was Apoel's third in an 8–0 win. He made 26 league appearances in his first 13 months with the club, before a dispute with manager Paolo Tramezzani led to his contract being terminated for disciplinary reasons.

Having stayed in the same league with Apollon Limassol, Nsue returned to APOEL in September 2020, on a one-year contract.

International career

Spain

Nsue represented his native Spain at all under-age levels. He was a member of the under-17 squad for the 2006 European Championships, but was injured in their opening match and took no further part in the finals. He started all five matches as Spain's under-19s won the 2007 European Championships, and was again part of the squad for the following year's tournament. Spain failed to progress past the group stage, losing to both Germany and Hungary – according to UEFA's technical report, "one of the poignant images of the tournament was provided by striker Emilio Nsue who was so upset by missed chances that he played the closing minutes weeping disconsolately." He scored twice in a 4–0 defeat of Bulgaria in the third group match that meant they still qualified for the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup. Nsue played in two of the three group stage matches, scoring twice in an 8–0 win against Tahiti, and played the whole of the round of 16 match in which Spain were eliminated by Italy. Nsue made his under-21 debut in 2009. He was part of the 2011 European title-winning squad, but appeared only once, as a substitute in the group stages against the Czech Republic.

Equatorial Guinea

Nsue turned down an invitation to represent his father's native country, Equatorial Guinea, at the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations as he wanted to be a part of the Spanish team for the Olympics, but he did not make the final cut. In March 2013, he signed a contract with the Equatoguinean Football Federation, committing himself to attend all call-ups in which he was included, all expenses paid.

He scored on his debut for Equatorial Guinea in an unofficial friendly with Benin on 21 March 2013; he captained the team and played the first 45 minutes. He was again captain on his first competitive appearance, when he scored a hat-trick in a 4–3 win over Cape Verde in a 2014 World Cup qualifier. FIFA later declared him ineligible for that match and for the return fixture, awarding both games to Cape Verde by a 3–0 scoreline.

Nsue captained Equatorial Guinea's team as they hosted and finished fourth in the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations. He scored the tournament's opening goal in a 1–1 draw with the Republic of the Congo on 17 January at the Estadio de Bata.

Career statistics

As of match played 8 March 2020

1. Includes Copa del Rey, FA Cup, Cypriot Cup
2. Includes Football League Cup/EFL Cup
3. Appearance in Championship play-offs
4. ^ Appearances in UEFA Europa League

International goals

Scores and results show Equatorial Guinea's goal tally first. Score column gives score after Nsue's goal.

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
—	24 March 2013	Estadio de Malabo, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea	Cape Verde	1–0	0–3	2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
—				2–1
—				3–2
1.	17 January 2015	Estadio de Bata, Bata, Equatorial Guinea	Congo	1–0	1–1	2015 Africa Cup of Nations
2.	14 June 2015		Benin	1–1	1–1	2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
3.	4 September 2016	Estadio de Malabo, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea	South Sudan	2–0	4–0
4.	9 October 2017	Estadio de Bata, Bata, Equatorial Guinea	Mauritius	1–0	3–1	Friendly
5.				3–1
6.	8 September 2018		Sudan	1–0	1–0	2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
7.	22 March 2019	Al-Hilal Stadium, Omdurman, Sudan		1–1	4–1
8.				2–1
9.	25 March 2019	King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia	Saudi Arabia	1–2	2–3	Friendly
10.				2–3
11.	8 September 2019	Estadio de Malabo, Malabo, Equatorial Guinea	South Sudan	1–0	1–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
12.	25 March 2021		Tanzania	1–0	1–0	2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualification

1. Match forfeited.

Honours

Spain U19

• UEFA European Under-19 Championship: 2007

Spain U20

• Mediterranean Games: 2009

Spain U21

• UEFA European Under-21 Championship: 2011

References

1. Barba, Borja (4 February 2008). "Emilio Nsue, savia nueva para el ataque mallorquinista" [Emilio Nsue, new blood for Mallorcan attack] (in Spanish). Diarios de Fútbol. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
2. ^ "Nsue: Emilio Nsue López: Matches: 2007–08". BDFutbol. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
3. Sidro, Xavi (23 August 2008). "Nsue, nuevo jugador del Castellón" [Nsue, new player for Castellón]. Las Provincias (in Spanish). Valencia. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
4. "El Castellón golea en el derbi ante el Levante" [Castellón rout Levante in derby]. Marca (in Spanish). EFE. 18 October 2008. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
5. Badallo, Óscar (10 December 2009). "Nsue: "Tengo mucho cariño al Castellón, pero está claro que acerté al venir aquí"" [Nsue: "I'm very fond of Castellón, but it's clear that I was right to come here"]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 12 January 2018.
6. "Slow start for Mourinho". ESPN Soccernet. 29 August 2010. Archived from the original on 28 June 2011.
7. "Nsue shocks Barca". ESPN Soccernet. 3 October 2010. Archived from the original on 28 June 2011.
8. "Nsue: "Empezaré en el lateral"" [Nsue: "I will start as a fullback"] (in Spanish). RCD Mallorca. 13 July 2012. Archived from the original on 2 March 2014. Retrieved 14 July 2012.
9. "Emilio Nsue: Middlesbrough sign Real Mallorca winger". BBC Sport. 1 August 2014. Retrieved 18 January 2015.
10. Shaw, Dominic (31 July 2014). "Boro reportedly chase Real Mallorca utility man Emilio Nsue". Teesside Live. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
11. "Middlesbrough 2–0 Birmingham". BBC Sport. 9 August 2014. Retrieved 18 January 2015.
12. "Oldham 0–3 Middlesbrough". BBC Sport. 12 August 2014. Retrieved 18 January 2015.
13. Shepka, Phil (25 May 2015). "Middlesbrough 0–2 Norwich". BBC Sport. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
14. Tallentire, Philip (4 August 2016). "Boro will use Emilio Nsue in attacking role confirms head coach Aitor Karanka". Evening Gazette. Middlesbrough. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
15. "Aitor Karanka praises the efforts of Adam Forshaw and Emilio Nsue". Middlesbrough F.C. 16 December 2015. Retrieved 8 January 2016.
16. "Huddersfield 0–2 Middlesbrough". BBC Sport. 28 November 2015. Retrieved 28 November 2015.
17. "Middlesbrough 1–0 Burnley". BBC Sport. 15 December 2015. Retrieved 15 December 2015.
18. Taylor, Jonathon (21 November 2017). "Birmingham's Emilio Nsue on Middlesbrough's supporters, that 'Ain't Nobody' chant & his Riverside return". Teesside Live. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
19. "Emilio Nsue: Birmingham City sign Middlesbrough winger". BBC Sport. 18 January 2017. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
20. Chapman, Joseph (18 January 2017). "Blues complete signing of Middlesbrough defender Emilio Nsue". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
21. ^ "Games played by Emilio Nsue in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
22. "Norwich 2–0 Birmingham: Blues woes continue under Gianfranco Zola". Sky Sports. PA Sport. 28 January 2017. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
23. ^ Dick, Brian (8 January 2018). "Birmingham City transfer comment: The Blues brief changed for Emilio Nsue". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
24. "Bristol City 0–1 Birmingham City". BBC Sport. 7 May 2017. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
25. "Birmingham City 1–4 Queens Park Rangers". BBC Sport. 18 February 2017. Retrieved 19 February 2017.
26. "Emilio Nsue joins Apoel FC". Birmingham City F.C. 8 January 2018. Retrieved 8 January 2018.
27. "Doxa 0–8 APOEL FC (A20)". APOEL FC. 14 January 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
    "Ντεμπούτο «όνειρο» για τον Ενσούε!" ["Dream" debut for Nsue!]. Goal.com.cy (in Greek). 14 January 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
28. ^ "Nsue". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
29. "Απόφαση Πειθαρχικού Συμβουλίου για ποδοσφαιριστή Emilio Nsue" [Decision of the Disciplinary Board on footballer Emilio Nsue] (in Greek). APOEL FC. 28 February 2019. Retrieved 8 March 2019.
    Constantinou, Iacovos (24 February 2019). "Crucial clash in Limassol between top two sides". Cyprus Mail. Retrieved 8 March 2019.
    Constantinou, Iacovos (2 March 2019). "Top six Cyprus teams fighting for spots in Europe". Cyprus Mail. Retrieved 8 March 2019.
30. "Φιρμάνι για Ενσούε στον ΑΠΟΕΛ!" [Nsue signs for APOEL!] (in Greek). Sigma Live. 3 September 2020. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
31. Saffer, Paul (4 May 2006). "Injured Nsue out of finals". UEFA. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
32. Haslam, Andrew (28 July 2007). "Parejo the hero as Spain reign again". UEFA. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
33. "2008 UEFA European Under-19 Championship technical report" (PDF). UEFA. 2009. p. 4. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
34. Haslam, Andrew (20 July 2008). "Clinical Spain finish with a flourish". UEFA. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
35. "FIFA Tournaments: Emilio Nsue". FIFA. Retrieved 12 January 2017.
36. "Nsue: Emilio Nsue López: Matches: 2011–12". BDFutbol. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
37. ^ Stevenson, Jonathan (25 June 2011). "Spain beat Switzerland to win Euro Under-21 Championship". BBC Sport. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
38. Ames, Nick; Lay, Taimour (25 January 2015). "Equatorial Guinea's Emilio Nsue stealing hearts at Africa Cup of Nations". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
39. Monsuy Senior, David (7 March 2013). "Emilio Nsue will play with the National Nzalang". Equatorial Guinea's Press and Information Office. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
40. Monsuy Senior, David (21 March 2013). "The National Nzalang wins 3–0 against Benin". Equatorial Guinea's Press and Information Office. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
41. Kobo, Kingsley (24 March 2013). "Africa World Cup 2014 qualifying results:Liberia, Equatorial Guinea join winners Mali & Ethiopia". Goal.com. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
42. "Equatorial Guinea sanctioned for fielding ineligible player". FIFA. 19 July 2013. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
43. Hughes, Ian (17 January 2015). "Equatorial Guinea 1–1 Congo". BBC Sport. Retrieved 18 January 2015.
    "DR Congo finish third after shootout". Confederation of African Football (CAF). 7 February 2015. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
44. ^ "Nsue: Emilio Nsue López". BDFutbol. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
45. "Games played by Emilio Nsue in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
46. "Games played by Emilio Nsue in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
47. "Games played by Emilio Nsue in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 8 January 2018.
48. "Emilio Nsue". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 25 March 2019.
49. "2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil: Equatorial Guinea-Cape Verde Islands - Report". FIFA.
50. Winter, Henry (24 June 2011). "European Under-21 Championship: Spain's young diamonds dazzle in the spotlight". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
51. "Football: Men: Gold Medal Match" (PDF). Pescara 2009. 4 July 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 February 2012.

External links

• Emilio Nsue – FIFA competition record (archived)

v t e Equatorial Guinea squad – 2015 Africa Cup of Nations fourth place
1 Ovono 2 Evuy 3 Igor 4 Rui 5 Mbele 6 Juvenal 7 Belima 8 Randy 9 Fabiani 10 Nsue 11 Balboa 12 Bolado 13 Embela 14 Kike 15 Iban 16 Sipo 17 Rubén Darío 18 Ellong 19 Charly 20 Miguel Ángel 21 Zarandona 22 Ganet 23 Mosibe Coach: Becker

• 1989 births
• Living people
• Sportspeople from Palma de Mallorca
• Citizens of Equatorial Guinea through descent
• Footballers from the Balearic Islands
• Spanish footballers
• Equatoguinean footballers
• Equatorial Guinea international footballers
• Association football defenders
• Association football wingers
• Association football forwards
• Association football utility players
• RCD Mallorca B players
• RCD Mallorca players
• CD Castellón footballers
• Real Sociedad footballers
• Middlesbrough F.C. players
• Birmingham City F.C. players
• Tercera División players
• La Liga players
• Segunda División players
• English Football League players
• Premier League players
• Cypriot First Division players
• Spain youth international footballers
• Spain under-21 international footballers
• 2015 Africa Cup of Nations players
• Spanish expatriate footballers
• Equatoguinean expatriate footballers
• Equatoguinean expatriate sportspeople in England
• Expatriate footballers in England
• Equatoguinean expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus
• Expatriate footballers in Cyprus
• Spanish people of Equatoguinean descent
• Equatoguinean people of Spanish descent
• Mediterranean Games gold medalists for Spain
• Mediterranean Games medalists in football
• Competitors at the 2009 Mediterranean Games