Adam Uche Idah (born 11 February 2001) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a forward for Scottish Premiership club Celtic and the Republic of Ireland national team.
 Idah playing for Norwich City in the 2021–22 season. | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Adam Uche Idah[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 11 February 2001 | ||
| Place of birth | Cork, Ireland | ||
| Height | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Celtic | ||
| Number | 9 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2007–2017 | College Corinthians | ||
| 2017–2019 | Norwich City | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2019–2024 | Norwich City | 100 | (12) |
| 2024 | → Celtic (loan) | 15 | (8) |
| 2024– | Celtic | 8 | (2) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2016 | Republic of Ireland U16 | 2 | (0) |
| 2016–2018 | Republic of Ireland U17 | 22 | (14) |
| 2017–2018 | Republic of Ireland U18 | 5 | (2) |
| 2018 | Republic of Ireland U19 | 5 | (2) |
| 2019 | Republic of Ireland U21 | 12 | (5) |
| 2020– | Republic of Ireland | 29 | (4) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 17:11, 10 November 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 22:07, 10 October 2024 (UTC) | |||
Early career
editBorn in Cork to a Nigerian father and an Irish mother, Idah attended Douglas Community School.[3][4] He started playing football with College Corinthians in 2007 at the age of six.[5] He stayed with the Corinthians for ten years progressing through the youth levels before joining Norwich City as an academy scholar in 2017.[6] In his first season at Norwich Idah played in the Professional Development League in Norwich's Premier League Under-18 side, scoring nine goals in 15 games. He completed a 10-minute hat-trick against Barnsley in the FA Youth Cup before scoring another hat-trick against Tottenham Hotspur in the U18 league.[7] At the end of the season Idah won both the Norwich Under-18 player of the season and the academy player of the year awards.[8]
During his second season at Norwich, Idah was productive in the youth team. He played in the club's under-23 side in Premier League 2, scoring 12 goals in 19 games. At the end of the season Idah was one of the eight nominations for Premier League 2 player of the season.[9] On 4 July 2019, he signed his first professional contract with the club, signing a contract until 2023.[10][11] In the 2019 pre-season, Idah trained with the first team,[12] and was chosen to be part of Norwich's squad on their pre-season tour to Germany.[13][14] In the first game of the tour he came on as a substitute in the 2–2 draw with Arminia Bielefeld,[15] starting his first senior game for Norwich three days later in the friendly against Bonner SC, scoring two goals.[16][17] Idah again featured in Norwich's final game of the tour, coming on as a substitute against Schalke 04.[18]
Senior career
editNorwich City
editIdah made his first senior appearance on 27 August 2019, playing the full 90 minutes as Norwich lost 1–0 at Crawley Town in the EFL Cup.[19] He made his Premier League debut as a substitute against Crystal Palace on 1 January 2020[19] before starting Norwich's 2019–20 FA Cup third round match at Preston North End on 4 January, making his FA Cup debut. He scored his first professional hat-trick in the match, his third senior appearance for Norwich.[20] On 15 January 2022, Idah scored his first Premier League goal for Norwich City in a 2–1 win against Everton.[21] It was his first start for Norwich City in the Premier League and his first start for the Canaries at Carrow Road.
Celtic
editIdah moved on loan to Celtic on 1 February 2024.[22] Idah scored the winning goal in the 2024 Scottish Cup final at Hampden Park against Rangers, sealing the League and Cup double.[23]
On 14 August 2024, Idah returned to Celtic on a permanent transfer, signing a five-year contract.[24]
International career
editIdah was born in Cork to an Igbo-Nigerian father and Irish mother.[25]
He has been a youth international for Ireland.[26] Following Idah's hat-trick for Norwich City against Preston North End on 4 January 2020, Republic of Ireland manager Mick McCarthy hinted that Idah may soon earn a full cap, commenting "He might have just got himself one", while working as a pundit for BT Sport's coverage of the match.[27] On 24 August 2020, Idah was named in the Republic of Ireland senior squad for the first time for the UEFA Nations League games against Bulgaria and Finland, in what was his manager at under 21 level, Stephen Kenny's first squad as senior manager.[28]
On 3 September 2020, on his first call-up for the senior team, he made his debut in a 1–1 draw away to Bulgaria in the 2020–21 UEFA Nations League.[29]
On 19 June 2023, he scored his first goal for Ireland in a 3–0 win against Gibraltar in a UEFA Euro 2024 qualifier.[30]
On 10 September 2023, he scored the opener for Ireland in an eventual 2-1 defeat to Netherlands in a UEFA Euro 2024 qualifier.
Career statistics
editClub
edit- As of match played 10 November 2024[31]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Norwich City | 2019–20 | Premier League | 12 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | — | 16 | 3 | |
| 2020–21 | Championship | 17 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 17 | 3 | ||
| 2021–22 | Premier League | 17 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 21 | 1 | ||
| 2022–23 | Championship | 25 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | — | 27 | 3 | ||
| 2023–24 | Championship | 28 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | 34 | 7 | ||
| 2024–25 | Championship | 1 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Total | 100 | 12 | 9 | 4 | 7 | 1 | — | 116 | 17 | |||
| Celtic (loan) | 2023–24 | Scottish Premiership | 15 | 8 | 4 | 1 | — | — | 19 | 9 | ||
| Celtic | 2024–25 | Scottish Premiership | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 4[c] | 1 | 15 | 5 |
| Total | 23 | 10 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 34 | 14 | ||
| Career total | 123 | 22 | 13 | 5 | 10 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 150 | 31 | ||
International
edit- As of match played 10 October 2024[32]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Republic of Ireland | 2020 | 5 | 0 |
| 2021 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 9 | 3 | |
| 2024 | 7 | 1 | |
| Total | 29 | 4 | |
- Scores and results list the Republic of Ireland's goal tally first.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19 June 2023 | Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland |  Gibraltar |
3–0 | 3–0 | UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying |
| 2 | 10 September 2023 | Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland |  Netherlands |
1–0 | 1–2 | UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying |
| 3 | 21 November 2023 | Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland |  New Zealand |
1–0 | 1–1 | Friendly |
| 4 | 4 June 2024 | Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland |  Hungary |
1–0 | 2–1 | Friendly |
- ^ Includes FA Cup and Scottish Cup
- ^ Includes EFL Cup and Scottish League Cup
- ^ Appearances in UEFA Champions League
Honours
editNorwich City
Celtic
References
edit- ^ "Adam Idah :: Celtic :: Player Profile :: playmakerstats.com". www.playmakerstats.com.
- ^ "Adam Idah". Norwich City F.C. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
- ^ Freezer, David (8 January 2020). "'Everyone is buzzing for Adam' - City starlet inspires in Ireland but success comes as no surprise". Eastern Daily Press. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
- ^ Winter, Simon (20 May 2024). "Adam Idah – Irish international and Celtic striker 1". Tonybet Blog. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
- ^ "Fantastic week for former Corinthians Star Adam Idah". collegecorinthians.com. 17 October 2017. Archived from the original on 27 November 2020. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
- ^ "Ireland under-17 striker Adam Idah joins Norwich City". extratime.ie.
- ^ "Another hat-trick for Idah as Republic of Ireland youth international continues to impress for Norwich U18s". edp24.co.uk. 12 April 2018.
- ^ "Adam Idah Sweeps Norwich Awards As Wes Hoolahan Signs Off". punditarena.com. 30 April 2018. Archived from the original on 27 November 2020. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
- ^ "Canaries youngster nominated for PL2 Player of the Season award". pinkun.com. 7 May 2019. Archived from the original on 9 May 2019. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
- ^ "Adam Idah signs new Norwich City contract and joins up with first-team squad". canaries.co.uk.
- ^ "Norwich City star makes first-team jump with new Canaries contract". pinkun.com. 4 July 2019.
- ^ "City keen to give young striker a chance this summer". edp24.co.uk. Archived from the original on 3 July 2019. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
- ^ "Club confirms travelling squads for Germany tour". canaries.co.uk.
- ^ "See for yourself – Norwich City confirm first-team squad for Germany pre-season tour". edp24.co.uk. Archived from the original on 24 October 2020. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
- ^ "Norwich City draw 2–2 with Arminia Bielefeld in pre-season opener". canaries.co.uk.
- ^ "Idah scores twice in pre-season win as Norwich City gear up for Premier League return". the42.ie.
- ^ "Adam Idah nets brace in Norwich City friendly victory over Bonner SC". canaries.co.uk.
- ^ "MATCHDAY RECAP: Schalke 1 Norwich City 2 – Bundesliga opponents beaten by Canaries". pinkun.com. 19 July 2019.
- ^ a b "Crawley Town vs. Norwich City 1 - 0". Soccerway. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
- ^ "Preston North End 2-4 Norwich City". BBC Sport. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
- ^ "Norwich 2 Everton 1". BBC Sport. 15 January 2022. Retrieved 18 January 2022.
- ^ "Adam Idah: Celtic sign Norwich City forward on loan for rest of season". www.bbc.co.uk. BBC Sport. 1 February 2024. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
- ^ a b "Celtic v Rangers: Watch Old Firm Scottish Cup final at Hampden". BBC Sport.
- ^ "Adam Idah returns to the Champions as he signs five-year-deal with Celtic". Celtic FC. 14 August 2024. Retrieved 14 August 2024.
- ^ Fallon, John (11 May 2018). "Irish youngster Adam Idah inspired by memory of granddad Kevin". Irish Examiner.
- ^ Fennessy, Paul. "18-year-old Ireland starlet enhances growing reputation". The42.
- ^ "McCarthy: Idah in mix for senior cap after Cup heroics". RTÉ News. 4 January 2020.
- ^ "Stephen Kenny names squad for Bulgaria and Finland matches". Football Association of Ireland. 24 August 2020. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
- ^ "Late Duffy header spares Kenny a debut defeat in Bulgaria". The 42. 3 September 2020. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
- ^ "Ireland 3 Gibraltar 0". RTE Sport. 19 June 2023. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
- ^ "Republic of Ireland – A.Idah". Ie.soccerway.com. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
- ^ "Adam Idah". eu-football.info. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
- ^ Strack-Zimmermann, Benjamin. "Adam Idah (Player)". www.national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 17 July 2023.
- ^ "Celtic champions after thumping win at Kilmarnock". BBC Sport. 15 May 2024. Retrieved 14 August 2024.
External links
edit
- Profile at the Norwich City F.C. website
- Adam Idah at Premier League
