Matthew Etim (born 2 September 1989), is a Nigerian 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

Akwa United Akwa United Football Club is a Nigerian football (soccer), football club based in Uyo, in Akwa Ibom State. They play in the Nigeria Professional Football League, the first division of Nigerian football. The Godswill Akpabio International Stadium i ...

in the NPFL.

Club career

Etim made his league debut in the NPFL in the 2010—11 season with Kaduna United. He left Kaduna United after two seasons (2010 to 2012) and joined seven-time NPFL champions,

Enugu Rangers Rangers International Football Club, commonly known as Enugu Rangers, is a Nigerian professional association football team founded in 1970. Based in Enugu, the Rangers play their home games at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium. Enugu Rangers are one ...

, where he spent five seasons (2012 to 2017). Etim won the

2016 Nigeria Professional Football League The 2016 Nigeria Professional Football League (referred to as the Nigerian Globacom, Glo premier league for sponsorship reasons) is the 45th season of the Nigeria Premier League, the top Nigerian professional league for association football clubs, ...

title with Enugu Rangers. During the summer of 2016, Etim featured for NPFL All-stars in the tour of Spain. On 10 August 2016, he suffered a strain on his left foot in the 2–1 loss to

Valencia CF Valencia Club de Fútbol, S. A. D. (; ), commonly referred to as Valencia CF or simply Valencia, is a Spanish professional Association football, football club based in Valencia, Spain, that currently plays in La Liga, the top tier of the Spani ...

at the Alzira Stadium. The injury ruled him out of the rest of the tour, and his place was taken by Ifeanyi Nweke in subsequent matches - against

Atlético Madrid Club Atlético de Madrid, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), commonly referred to as Atlético Madrid or simply Atlético, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid that plays in La Liga. The club play their home game ...

and

Málaga CF Málaga Club de Fútbol (, ''Málaga Football Club''), or simply Málaga, is a club based in Málaga, Andalusia, Spain, who compete in Segunda División, the second tier of the Spanish football league system, Spanish league system, following the ...

. Matthew Etim joined Uyo-based club,

from Enugu Rangers on a one-year deal in December 2017, with an option for an extension. He was unveiled at the

Godswill Akpabio International Stadium The Godswill Akpabio International Stadium (formerly Akwa Ibom International Stadium) is a 30,000 capacity national sports stadium located in Uyo, the state capital of Akwa Ibom State, Akwa Ibom. The stadium serves as a home to the Nigeria natio ...

on 6 January 2018. He took over the team's no. 4 jersey from Alhassan Ibrahim, after the former

Nigeria national under-20 football team The Nigerian men's national under-20 football team represents Nigeria in men's international association football, football also known as the Nigeria Under-20s or nicknamed the ''Flying Eagles.'' The Flying Eagles is the youth team for the nat ...

player moved to

FK Austria Wien Fußballklub Austria Wien AG (), known in English as Austria Vienna, and Austria Wien in German language in Europe, German-speaking countries, is an Football in Austria, Austrian professional association football club from the capital city of Vi ...

International career

Etim made his debut in the 4–1 win over Niger in a Group C matchday one tie at the 2016

African Nations Championship The African Nations Championship, known for sponsorship purposes as the TotalEnergies African Nations Championship and commonly abbreviated as CHAN, is a biennial African association football tournament organized by the Confederation of Afri ...

on 18 January 2016. He played from start to finish. The defender went on to star the whole duration of the 1–1 draw against Tunisia and 1–0 loss to Guinea in the second and third group matches respectively, as Nigeria failed to advance to the knockout stages.

Club honours

Enugu Rangers *

Nigeria Professional Football League The Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) (formerly the Nigeria Professional Football League) is the highest level of club football in Nigerian football league system. The Nigerian Premier League has suffered like many others, from the financi ...

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Etim, Matthew Living people 1989 births 21st-century Nigerian sportsmen Nigerian men's footballers Footballers from Akwa Ibom State Men's association football fullbacks Nigeria men's international footballers Nigeria men's A' international footballers 2016 African Nations Championship players Kaduna United F.C. players Rangers International F.C. players Akwa United F.C. players