Emilio Nsue

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Nsue and the second or maternal family name is López.
Emilio Nsue
Nsue with Birmingham City in 2017
Personal information
Full name Emilio Nsue López[1]
Date of birth (1989-09-30) 30 September 1989 (age 35)[2]
Place of birth Palma de Mallorca, Spain[3]
Height 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)[4]
Position(s) Right-back, winger
Team information
Current team
 Intercity
Number 8
Youth career
Atlético Baleares
2004–2006 Mallorca
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2006–2008 Mallorca B 55 (26)
2008–2014 Mallorca 142 (13)
2008–2009 → Castellón (loan) 38 (7)
2009–2010 → Real Sociedad (loan) 33 (5)
2014–2017 Middlesbrough 70 (3)
2017–2018 Birmingham City 36 (1)
2018–2019 APOEL 26 (10)
2019–2020 Apollon Limassol 14 (1)
2020–2021 APOEL 27 (3)
2022 Tuzla City 7 (1)
2022– Intercity 59 (16)
International career‡
2005 Spain U16 3 (3)
2005–2006 Spain U17 9 (5)
2006–2008 Spain U19 21 (7)
2009 Spain U20 10 (4)
2009–2011 Spain U21 8 (1)
2013– Equatorial Guinea 45 (22)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 13:12, 10 June 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 25 March 2024

Emilio Nsue López (born 30 September 1989) is a professional footballer who plays for Primera Federación club Intercity. He captained the Equatorial Guinea national team, of which he is the all-time top scorer, until he was found to have been ineligible to play for Equatorial Guinea. A versatile player, he plays mainly as a right-back but can also play as a winger.

Nsue began his career at Mallorca, where he appeared in 153 competitive games and four La Liga seasons, and spent time on loan at Real Sociedad and Castellón. In 2014, he joined English club Middlesbrough, and helped them gain promotion to the Premier League in 2016. Nsue signed for Birmingham City in January 2017, and a year later moved into Cypriot football, spending 18 months with APOEL, a season with Apollon Limassol, and another season with APOEL. After six months without a club, he joined Bosnian Premier League club Tuzla City in 2022, before joining Spanish club Intercity later in the same year.

Nsue was born in Spain to an Equatoguinean father and a Spanish mother and initially played for Spain at youth level, winning European championships at under-19 level in 2007 and under-21 level in 2011. In 2013, he made his senior international debut for Equatorial Guinea, his father's country, despite not having Equatoguinean nationality nor permission to switch allegiances.[5] He played in three Africa Cup of Nations tournaments in 2015, 2021, and 2023, being the top scorer of the latter and receiving the Golden Boot as a result.[6] In 2024, FIFA judges ruled that Nsue was ineligible to play for the Equatorial Guinea national team for his entire career and handed him a playing ban.[5]

  1. ^ "Squads for 2016/17 Premier League confirmed". Premier League. 1 September 2016. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 15 September 2016.
  2. ^ "FIFA U-20 World Cup Egypt 2009™: List of Players: Spain" (PDF). FIFA. 6 October 2009. p. 17. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 October 2009.
  3. ^ "Emilio Nsue López". RCD Mallorca (in European Spanish). Archived from the original on 29 September 2010.
  4. ^ "Emilio Nsue". Birmingham City F.C. Archived from the original on 5 January 2018. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
  5. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference AP-FIFA was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Okafor, Obidike (12 February 2024). "AFCON: Here is the full list of award winners - Businessday NG". Businessday NG. Retrieved 12 February 2024.