Derby County’s Nigerian-born midfielder, Ikechi Anya has received special greetings on his birth, as his club set aside official duties on Thursday to celebrate with him.
As the Scottish international marked his 31st birthday, Derby rolled out sweet words for the hairy player, whose father is a Nigerian research scientist and mother a Romanian economist.
The couple met while studying in Bucharest, Romania and, after finishing their studies, they moved to Scotland in the late 80s for his father to get a doctorate in metallurgy.
Sports247.ng reports that Anya, who grew up on the south side of Glasgow, Scotland with his parents, is a versatile player and has been fielded in a number of other positions.
His abilities have seen him line out as a winger, wing-back and full-back, with high marks in all during his days in England at Wycombe Wanderers, Northampton Town and Watford, as well as for Celta de Vigo, Sevilla and Granada of Spain.
Eligible to also represent Romania, Nigeria or England internationally, he chose to play for the country of his birth, Scotland.
His mother, Mariena, recalled that, as a kid Anya “was kicking a ball in front of the house where he grew up in Glasgow from morning till night.”
The family moved to Oxford when he was seven, after his father got a job at the university, but Anya maintained his fondness for Scotland, hence his decision to play for The Tartan Army at senior level.
He received his first cap for the Scottish national team on September 6, 2013, off the bench in a 2–0 loss to Belgium and scored his first goal four days later in Scotland’s following match away to Macedonia.
After a career progression that saw him play for nine different clubs, Anya joined Derby County on August 31, 2016 in a 4-year contract.
Anya scored his first goal for the club in a 1–1 draw with Bristol City on September 17, 2016, and has since gone on to shine regularly for the team that also features Fikayo Tomori on loan from Chelsea.
In recognition of his impact with their team, The Rams took to social media to celebrate with him and stated: “Happy Birthday, Ikechi Anya!”
