Published 15:56 IST, February 15th 2020
Adebayor: Former Arsenal forward turns journeyman after Olimpia becomes his 10th team
Former Arsenal star Emmanuel Adebayor has joined Paraguay side Olimpia. This would be the 10th football club in his career. Here's a look at the star's journey.
Former Arsenal star Emmanuel Adebayor has secured a move to Paraguayan side Olimpia on Tuesday. The player has joined Olimpia after a four-month stint with Turkish club Kayserispor. This would be his 10th club in his professional football career. Let us look at the player’s unsettling footballing career, which was marred by controversies and attitude issues.
What happened to Adebayor? Former Real Madrid player joins Olimpia
Emmanuel Adebayor rose to fame when he joined Arsenal from Monaco for a reported fee of £3 million in 2006. The Togolese international had a successful stint at Emirates, making 142 appearances in four seasons for the Gunners. He also netted a decent 62 goals in his time with Arsenal.
His time at Emirates was marred by controversy when he allegedly punched Chelsea star Frank Lampard in the League Cup final. The referee subsequently sent him off, while FA handed him a four-match ban. However, Lampard and Adebayour later denied the incident.
What happened to Adebayor? He played for Manchester City as well
In 2009, he joined Manchester City on a five-year contract for a fee of £25 million. The player holds the record of being one of the six players to score in the first four consecutive games in the Premier League. During one of the games against his former club Arsenal, Robin van Persie alleged that Abedayor kicked his face for which the Togolese was handed a four-match ban.
He was also criticised for celebrating wildly after scoring against his former club. He spent two seasons at Etihad where he played 45 games, while managing to score 19 goals in all competitions. Adebayor departed for a season-long loan to Real Madrid (2010-11).
Adebayor's stint at Real Madrid
Emmanuel Adebayor was largely restricted to the bench at Real Madrid. However, he did manage to make 22 appearances for Los Blancos, while also netting eight goals. In the game against Almeria in LaLiga, he scored his first hat-trick for the club. After his loan spell with Real Madrid, Manchester City loaned him out to Tottenham Hotspur.
Adebayor spent four seasons at Tottenham Hotspur. He was signed on a permanent deal by Spurs after his first season with them (2011-12), in which he scored the most goals among all the Spurs players. He again emerged as the club's top scorer in 2014-15 season. Adebayor was however released by Tottenham through mutual consent after four seasons at the North London club. He then went on to join Crystal Palace on a six-month deal.
The player did not enjoy a great time at Crystal Palace and scored just once in a span of six months. On the expiry of his term, due to Palace's unwillingness to extend his stay, he joined Turkish side Istanbul Basaksehir in 2017, only to leave it a season later. He then went on to join Kayserispor, only to subsequently join Paraguayan club Olimpia.
To sum it up, the player enjoyed great success with Arsenal as well as Tottenham, but attitude issues on the field doomed a great footballing talent. He was not considered an important member of then-Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino, who started preferring Harry Kane ahead of Adebayor. There was no return for the player after leaving Tottenham as he could not find his groove again.
Updated 15:56 IST, February 15th 2020