Nwankwo Kanu

Early career

Kanu began his career at local side Federation Works before moving to Iwuanyanwu Nationale. After a notable performance in Nigeria's victorious U-17 World Championship campaign, he was signed by Dutch giants Ajax in 1993 for an undisclosed fee. He made his Ajax debut that year and went on to score 25 goals in 54 appearances. Kanu also came on as a sub in Ajax's 1995 UEFA Champions League final 1–0 win over AC Milan. The next year, Ajax reached the final again, but lost to Juventus on penalties. Kanu started and played the entirety of that match.

Inter Milan

In 1996, Ajax sold Kanu to Serie A side Inter Milan for around $4.7 million. That summer he captained the Nigeria national team that won gold at the Olympics, and scored two late goals in the semi-finals against powerhouses Brazil to overturn a 2–3 scoreline into a 4–3 win in extra time. Kanu was also named African Footballer of the Year for that year. However, soon after returning from the Olympics, Kanu underwent a medical examination at Inter, which revealed a serious heart defect, and it was believed by doctors that his career was over. Inter could have resolved the contract for not having passed the medical test, but instead Inter president Massimo Moratti decided to keep the player and paid for the risky operation in the best clinic for chirurgical heart operations in Cleveland to replace an aortic valve caused by an innate malformation. He underwent successful surgery in November and…

Kanu was a member of the Nigeria national team from 1994 to 2011, making his debut in a friendly against Sweden. Earlier on at the start of his career, Kanu was instrumental in Nigeria's overall success at the 1993 FIFA U-17 World Championship in Japan and their subsequent 2–1 victory over Ghana in the final. With five goals, he was the second joint-scorer in the tournament with Peter Anosike and Manuel Neira, behind compatriot and captain Wilson Oruma. As well as winning the Olympic gold in the football event at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, where he scored the winning goal in the 4–3 semi-final win over Brazil, his second goal of the match, Kanu participated at the 1998 and 2002 FIFA World Cups. On 24 June 2010, Kanu ended his international career following Nigeria's exit from the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. The Super Eagles lost their group matches against Argentina and Greece, before drawing 2–2 with South Korea. He won 86 caps and scored 13 goals for his country and was the joint most capped Nigerian player of all-time alongside Muda Lawal, until Joseph Yobo surpassed both players in 2012, winning his 87th cap. Despite being a striker, he wore the number 4 shirt for the national team.

Nwankwo Christian Kanu was born on 1 August 1976 in Owerri, Imo State.

Kanu is a native of Abia State, southeast Nigeria, and a member of the Aro sub-group of the Igbo ethnic group. Nwankwo means "Child born on Nkwo market day" in the Igbo language. Kanu's younger brother, Christopher, was also a footballer, who played as a defender; he also has another younger brother, Ogbonna. Kanu is a Christian. Kanu was born with a congenital heart defect, which impeded his aortic valve from closing properly; it was discovered and operated on in 1996. Although it was feared that he would not play again, and that it would affect his career, he made a full recovery. He undergoes an annual medical check-up for the condition. In March 2014, he successfully underwent corrective heart surgery once again, in the United States.