Derrick Abu (born 18 December 2003) is a professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a

right-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categories: centre-backs, full-backs, sweepers ...

for club

Valenciennes Valenciennes (, also , , ; ; or ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department, Hauts-de-France, France. It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced ...

. Born in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, he is a former youth international for England U-17's.

Club career

Early career

Born in

Regensburg Regensburg (historically known in English as Ratisbon) is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Naab and Regen (river), Regen, Danube's northernmost point. It is the capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the ...

to Nigerian parents, Abu's family moved to England in 2006, when he was two years old. After representing grassroots side Coerver Coaching at a tournament in Spain, he was scouted and signed by

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

side Chelsea at under-11 level. He signed a scholarship contract with ''The Blues'' in July 2020, before signing on professional terms in February 2021. In late April 2023, he went on trial with fellow Premier League side

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition buildin ...

, scoring the winning penalty in a 5–3

penalty shoot-out The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to pe ...

win against the youth team of

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

in the

Premier League International Cup The Premier League International Cup is an English football competition for under-23 teams from across Europe. It was designed to provide players in English Category One academies with the opportunity to match themselves against other elite Euro ...

semi-final. On 16 June 2023, Chelsea announced that Abu would leave the club when his contract expired at the end of June.

Southampton

On 5 July 2023, Abu joined

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

on a two-year contract, initially joinining the Under-21 side for the 2023–24 season. On 1 February 2024, Abu joined League Two side Harrogate Town for the remainder of the 2023–24 season. Two days later, he made his first appearance for the club in a 1–1 draw against

Stockport County Stockport County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Stockport, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in EFL League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton ...

. On 25 June 2025, Southampton confirmed that Abu would be released following the expiry of his contract.

Valenciennes

On 1 July 2025, Abu joined

on a two-year contract.

International career

Abu is eligible to represent England, Germany and Nigeria at international level. In 2019, he reportedly made himself available to represent Nigeria at youth international level. He has since stated his desire to represent all three countries before making a final decision on who to represent. He has represented England at under-17 level.

Music career

Describing himself as having a "huge passion for music", Abu was involved with his church's choir from a young age, and wrote his first song at the age of eleven. He released a

rap Rapping (also rhyming, flowing, spitting, emceeing, or MCing) is an artistic form of vocal delivery and emotive expression that incorporates " rhyme, rhythmic speech, and ommonlystreet vernacular". It is usually performed over a backin ...

single in early 2022, and followed this up with an EP later the same year, under the name Cho$en.

Career statistics

Club

Discography

Singles

* ''Life's Changing'' (2022) * ''Real Love'' (2022) * ''Gucci'' (2022) * ''little do you know'' (2022) * ''Waste my time'' (2022) * ''Outside'' (2023) * ''Get in motion'' (2023)

EPs

* ''Page 1'' (2022)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abu, Derrick 2003 births Living people Footballers from Regensburg English people of Nigerian descent Sportspeople of Nigerian descent German people of Nigerian descent English men's footballers German men's footballers England men's youth international footballers Men's association football defenders Chelsea F.C. players Southampton F.C. players Harrogate Town A.F.C. players Valenciennes FC players English Football League players 21st-century English sportsmen 21st-century German sportsmen