Stanley Bobbi ‘Bobo‘ Nwabali is a Nigerian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Premier Soccer League club Chippa United and the Nigeria national team.

Originally from Imo State, Nwabali was born in Rivers State into an ogba Christian family, and grew up in Port Harcourt.

as a young boy growing up on the streets of Port Harcourt, he preferred a glamorous role as an out-field player, and on the strength of that, he joined Go Round FC as a defender. He was later moved upfield as a striker until a coach tried him at the goalpost.

The goalkeeper actually made his international debut in 2021 when the Super Eagles suffered a 4-0 defeat at the hands of Mexico in an international friendly in the United States (US).

Although the said friendly was high profile, Nigeria’s team predominantly featured players from the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL), with Ibrahim Sunusi, who plays for Major League Soccer (MLS) side CF Montreal, being the only exception.

The 27-year-old was first scouted by Super Eagles boss Jose Peseiro last year, after which he was included in the Portuguese coach’s provisional squad for AFCON 2024, or AFCON 2023, as it is officially known.

Nwabali was later trusted with a starting spot when Nigeria faced Guinea in a pre-tournament friendly on 8 January in Abu Dhabi – a game which the Super Eagles lost 2-0.

However, the Chippa United goalkeeper has only gotten better since, gaining the trust of Peseiro and displacing Francis Uzoho as the first-choice shot-stopper of the national team.

Meanwhile, Nwabali featured for four different Nigerian clubs before moving to South Africa to play in the Premier Soccer League (PSL).

The Rivers State-born goalkeeper’s first professional club was Go Round FC, who are in the second tier of Nigerian football.

He then moved to the top-flight side of Enyimba, but he only spent a year with the Aba Warriors before swapping the Aba-based club for rivals Lobi Stars.

After one year, Nwabali was on the move again, this time joining Katsina United, from where he secured a move abroad.

The last few weeks have been surreal for Stanley Nwabali, who has gone from relatively unknown to Nigeria’s first-choice goalkeeper at the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations( AFCON 2024).