Chidozie Awaziem Biography: Career, Family and Net Worth

Nigerian central defenders have built a strong reputation in European football over the past decade, and Chidozie Awaziem belongs firmly within that tradition. Recruited by FC Porto as a teenager and capped by the Nigerian national team before he turned 20, Awaziem has spent more than a decade navigating Portuguese, French, Turkish, Spanish, Croatian, and now American football, building a career defined by versatility and a willingness to relocate wherever opportunity led him.

Chidozie Awaziem Biography

Early Life and Background

Chidozie Collins Awaziem was born on January 1, 1997, in Enugu, in southeastern Nigeria. Standing out early for his physical stature, he came through Nigerian youth football with El-Kanemi Warriors before his talent attracted attention from European scouts. In 2014, while still a teenager, he secured a move to FC Porto, one of Portugal’s most prestigious football institutions, joining the club’s youth setup for what would be his final year as a junior player.

Career Journey

Awaziem’s move to Porto proved immediately productive. In his first year with the club, he helped the junior team win the corresponding league title, an early marker of the impact he would have within the Porto organization. His senior debut came with Porto’s B team in the Segunda Liga, Portugal’s second division, where he began building the experience that would eventually earn him a place in the senior squad.

That promotion came remarkably quickly. On January 27, 2016, at just 19 years old, Awaziem made his first appearance for Porto’s senior team, playing the full match in a 2-0 defeat. His first appearance in the Primeira Liga, Portugal’s top flight, followed shortly after, on February 12, 2016, when he started in a 2-1 win against fierce rivals S.L. Benfica, an opportunity that arose partly due to injuries affecting several of Porto’s regular defenders but one that he took full advantage of, establishing himself as a credible senior option at a major European club while still a teenager.

His career subsequently took on a well-traveled, loan-heavy character typical of young defenders developing at a big club with established options ahead of them in the pecking order. In the 2017-18 season, he was loaned to French club FC Nantes, making his Ligue 1 debut as a substitute in a 3-0 defeat to Lille OSC in August 2017. Further loan spells followed: to Turkish side Çaykur Rizespor in January 2019, to Spanish club CD Leganés later that year, and to Portuguese side Boavista FC for the 2020-21 season. He eventually signed permanently with Boavista, where he spent several seasons, including loan spells away from the club to Alanyaspor in Turkey and Hajduk Split in Croatia, with whom he won the Croatian Football Cup during the 2022-23 season, his career-best five-goal season also coming during this period of his career, an unusually productive tally for a centre-back.

More recently, Awaziem’s career has taken him to North America, with a move to FC Cincinnati in Major League Soccer in 2024, followed by a spell with Colorado Rapids in 2025. As of 2025, he returned to French football with a move to FC Nantes, the club where he had previously spent a loan season nearly a decade earlier, closing something of a circle in his well-traveled career.

International Career

Awaziem’s international career with Nigeria began when he was just 19 years old, receiving his first call-up for friendly matches against Mali and Luxembourg in May 2016. His rapid rise through both club and international football mirrors a broader pattern among Nigerian defenders who establish themselves quickly at major European academies before becoming fixtures of the national team setup. In recognition of his contributions, he was awarded the Member of the Order of the Niger, a notable Nigerian national honor.

Playing Style

Awaziem is known primarily for his physical presence and strong defensive instincts, attributes that have made him a reliable option across a wide range of football cultures, from the tactically disciplined Portuguese game to the more direct and physical demands of Turkish and Croatian football, and now Major League Soccer in the United States. His height and positional awareness have made him particularly effective in aerial duels and set-piece situations throughout his career.

Personal Life

Chidozie Awaziem is married to his wife, Oby Awaziem, who has generally kept a low public profile and maintains limited visibility on social media. The couple welcomed their first child, a daughter named Christel, on July 29, 2020, an occasion Awaziem marked publicly on his Instagram account, expressing gratitude and describing himself as the “latest Dad in town.” Beyond that milestone, Awaziem has generally kept the details of his family life private, preferring to let his football career speak for itself in the public eye.

Net Worth

Specific figures for Chidozie Awaziem’s net worth have not been independently verified or publicly confirmed. His earnings, accumulated across more than a decade of professional football spanning Portugal, France, Turkey, Spain, Croatia, and the United States, would reflect wages typical of a solid, well-traveled defender at clubs of varying size, though no audited total figure has been published.

The Nigeria-to-Porto Pipeline

Awaziem’s move to FC Porto at such a young age reflects a well-established scouting pathway that has connected promising Nigerian defenders to top European academies for over a decade. Portuguese clubs, and Porto in particular, have built a reputation for identifying and developing African football talent, often integrating young players from Nigeria, Ghana, and other West African nations into their academy systems before promoting the most promising prospects to senior football. That model has produced a steady stream of defenders, in particular, moving from Nigerian underage football into Portugal’s top flight, with Awaziem representing one of the more durable examples of that pipeline succeeding over a sustained period rather than a single breakthrough season.

His subsequent loan-heavy career, while sometimes viewed as a sign of struggling to nail down a regular starting role, is in fact a fairly standard developmental pattern for talented young defenders signed by clubs with deep, established squads. Spending time on loan at clubs in France, Turkey, and Spain allowed Awaziem to accumulate senior playing experience across multiple footballing cultures and tactical systems, building a breadth of experience that ultimately served him well once he moved into permanent first-team roles, first at Boavista and more recently in Major League Soccer.

Conclusion

Chidozie Awaziem’s career illustrates the kind of steady, adaptable path that has become increasingly common among talented Nigerian defenders who move to Europe at a young age. Rather than settling permanently at one club, he has built a career defined by mobility, Portugal, France, Turkey, Spain, Croatia, and the United States, adapting his game to each new footballing culture while maintaining the physical defensive qualities that first earned him a move to FC Porto as a teenager. More than a decade into his professional career, that adaptability remains his defining professional trait.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where was Chidozie Awaziem born?
He was born in Enugu, Nigeria, on January 1, 1997.

Which clubs has Chidozie Awaziem played for?
His career has included FC Porto, Nantes, Çaykur Rizespor, Leganés, Boavista, Alanyaspor, Hajduk Split, FC Cincinnati, Colorado Rapids, and a return to Nantes.

What position does Chidozie Awaziem play?
He plays as a centre-back, known for his physical presence and aerial ability.

Has Chidozie Awaziem played for the Nigerian national team?
Yes, he made his international debut for Nigeria in 2016 at the age of 19 and has been capped by the national team since.

Is Chidozie Awaziem married?
Yes, he is married to Oby Awaziem, and the couple has a daughter named Christel, born in July 2020.