Vincent Enyeama

Enyimba

During his spell with Enyimba, he won the CAF Champions League twice, with one noteworthy distinction: He was always substituted before penalty shootouts. "I don't know why I was substituted before penalties, but it worked," he said in an interview in 2006. "In Israel I stopped many penalties and now everyone knows that I can handle penalties."

Bnei Yehuda

After three seasons with Enyimba International and one with Iwuanyanwu Nationale (now known as Heartland), Enyeama moved to the Israeli club Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv. In his first season, the team qualified for the final of the Israel State Cup and, having finished fourth in the Israeli Premier League, for the 2006 UEFA Cup competition as well.

Hapoel Tel Aviv

Enyeama signed for Hapoel Tel Aviv in 2007. Hapoel endured a poor season in 2007/2008, but Enyeama helped the team avoid relegation and reach the state cup final. During the 2008–09 season, Enyeama became Hapoel's penalty kicker, won the "Player of The Year" award, and just missed out on leading Hapoel to the league title. In the 2009–10 season, Hapoel won the league and cup double, with Enyeama featuring prominently. He scored a goal in the Cup Final but missed a penalty in the last fixture of the year, which Hapoel eventually won by scoring in the 92nd minute, thereby capturing the league title. On 18 August 2010, he scored his first goal of the 2010–11 season with a penalty against Red Bull Salzburg in the Champions League…

After making his debut for the Nigeria national team against Kenya in May 2002, Enyeama was selected for the 2002 FIFA World Cup as a cover for Ike Shorunmu. He made his competitive debut in that tournament, keeping a clean sheet against England in the third group match. After the retirement of Shorunmu, he became the first-choice goalkeeper for the national team, helping the Super Eagles to third place finishes in the 2004, 2006, 2010 Africa Cup of Nations tournaments, and captaining the team to victory of in the 2013 edition. He has also participated in the 2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cups, and the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup. In the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations, Enyeama stopped three kicks in the quarter-final penalty shootout against Tunisia but could not prevent a loss to Ivory Coast in the semi-final. In the 2010 tournament, he was again Nigeria's shootout hero at the quarter-final stage, saving from Zambia's Thomas Nyrienda and scoring the winning kick himself. Enyeama made his second FIFA World Cup appearance in the 2010 tournament in South Africa. He was named man of the match in Nigeria's first game of the tournament, a defiant display that restricted Argentina to a 1–0 win. Enyeama, who was playing his 56th international for the Super Eagles, made six fine saves against the two-time world champions, four of them from Lionel Messi. Argentine coach Diego Maradona praised him as the reason Messi was not able to score a goal. Enyeama was also awarded man of the match in…

Enyeama is a Christian. He is married and a father of three. In 2004, he was involved in a car accident in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State southern Nigeria, in which two motorcycle passengers were killed. The driver of the car in which Enyeama was travelling was left in critical condition. Despite the severity of the accident, Enyeama suffered only bruises after the car somersaulted twice as it swerved to avoid the motorbike. His son Godswill Enyeama signed for Lille academy in 2024. A 1.94 m (6 ft 4+1⁄2 in) goalkeeper, he grew up in France where his father moved in 2011. Godswill first played for Lille area amateur club Croix for eight years before joining his father's former professional club.

Enyimba

Nigerian Premier League: 2001, 2002, 2003 CAF Champions League: 2003, 2004 Hapoel Tel-Aviv

Israeli Premier League: 2009–10 Israel State Cup: 2009–10, 2010–11 Maccabi Tel-Aviv

Israeli Premier League: 2012–13 Nigeria

Africa Cup of Nations: 2013 Individual

CAF Champions League Player of the Year: 2003, 2004 Footballer of the Year in Israel: 2009 UNFP Player of the Month: October 2013, November 2013 Prix Marc-Vivien Foé: 2013–14 Africa Cup of Nations Team of the Tournament: 2004, 2013 Goalkeeper of the year Nigeria Pitch Awards: 2013, 2014 King of the pitch Nigeria Pitch Awards: 2014 Goal Nigeria Player of the Year: 2014 IFFHS CAF Men's Team of the Decade 2011–2020 IFFHS 2023 March: Greatest African Goalkeeper of all Time. Orders

Member of the Order of the Niger