Ayo Akinola

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 2001:56a:f6f2:7d00:216:cbff:feb4:5d3d (talk) at 17:52, 6 October 2018. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Ayo Akinola
Personal information
Date of birth (2000-01-20) January 20, 2000 (age 24)
Place of birth Detroit, Michigan, United States
Height 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s) Forward
Team information
Current team
 Toronto FC
Number 20
Youth career
2008–2014 Brampton Blast
2015–2017 Toronto FC Academy
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2016– Toronto FC II 24 (7)
2018– Toronto FC 3 (0)
International career‡
2015 United States U15 7 (5)
2015–2017 United States U17 10 (5)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of July 4, 2018
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of June 30, 2017

Ayo Akinola (born January 20, 2000) is an American soccer player who currently plays as a forward for Toronto FC in Major League Soccer.

Club career

Toronto FC II

A product of the TFC Academy, Akinola was called up to the Toronto FC II set-up for the 2016 USL season.[1] On June 15, 2016, he made his debut as an 80th-minute substitute for Shaan Hundal in a 1–1 draw with FC Montreal. Akinola made his first start a week later in a 4–1 defeat to Louisville City.[2] On July 11, he scored a brace in a 4–2 win against the Harrisburg City Islanders and was named to the USL Team of the Week.[3] He finished the season with two goals from 10 appearances.

Akinola trialled with Eredivisie club PSV Eindhoven in November 2017.[4]

Toronto FC

On December 18, 2017, Akinola signed as a homegrown player with Major League Soccer side Toronto FC.[5] He became the 15th player to graduate from the TFC Academy and sign for the first team, and the 34th academy graduate to sign a professional contract for one of the Toronto FC teams.[6]

International career

In April 2015, Akinola made his international debut for the United States U15 national soccer team, appearing in a 4–1 victory against Costa Rica. The following day he scored his first international goal, netting four in a 6–2 win against Croatia. He also scored in his final appearances for the U15s in a 3–3 draw in England.[7]

In December 2015, Akinola was called up to the United States U17 squad and played 40 minutes in a 3–2 defeat to England U16s. He scored his first goal against Brazil in March 2016, before scoring a brace against Russia a few days later. In October 2017, Akinola scored the only goal in a 1–0 victory over Ghana at the FIFA U17 World Cup in India.[8]

Personal life

Born in Detroit, Michigan, Akinola moved to and raised in Brampton, Ontario as a child. He is eligible to play internationally for the United States, Canada or Nigeria.[9][10] Akinola's younger brother Tom is a member of the TFC Academy and has attended a Canadian under-14 camp.

Career statistics

As of October 6th, 2018
Club League Season League Playoffs Cup[a] Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Toronto FC II United Soccer League 2016 10 2 0 0 0 0 10 2
2018 14 5 0 0 0 0 14 5
Toronto FC Major League Soccer 2018 3 0 0 0 2 1 5 1
Career total 27 7 0 0 0 0 29 8
  1. ^ Includes Canadian Championship matches.

References

  1. ^ "Ayo Akinola". Toronto FC. Retrieved June 30, 2016.
  2. ^ "USA – A. Akinola – Profile with news, career statistics and history – Soccerway". us.soccerway.com. Retrieved June 30, 2016.
  3. ^ "Ayo Akinola Named To USL Team Of The Week". Toronto FC. July 12, 2016. Retrieved March 15, 2018. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  4. ^ Grossi, James (November 15, 2017). "Toronto FC academy player, US U-17 Ayo Akinola takes trial with PSV". MLS Soccer. Retrieved March 15, 2018. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  5. ^ "Teenage forward Ayo Akinola signs as Toronto FC homegrown player". Toronto Sun. December 18, 2017. Retrieved March 15, 2018.
  6. ^ "Toronto FC Sign Ayo Akinola". torontofc.ca. MLS. December 18, 2017. Retrieved January 27, 2018.
  7. ^ "Ayo Akinola". www.ussoccer.com. Retrieved June 30, 2016.
  8. ^ "TFC's Akinola scores as US U-17s edge Ghana in key U-17 World Cup clash". October 9, 2017.
  9. ^ "Toronto FC II's Akinola Ascending with U.S. U17s". USL Soccer. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  10. ^ Kingsley, Igho (September 19, 2017). "Toronto FC wonderkid Akinola set to follow in the footsteps of Man Utd's Olosunde". All Nigeria Soccer. Retrieved October 6, 2017.

External links


Flag of United StatesSoccer icon

This biographical article related to soccer in the United States is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ayo_Akinola&oldid=862784943"