His name might as well be The Fast and The Furious. Known for his speed and passion on the field, Obafemi Martins is a soccer player from Nigeria. He wears the Seattle Sounders jersey #9. The designated international player is a forward for the team. He stands at 5’7 and weighs 154 pounds. Martins was born on October 28, 1984 in Lagos, Nigeria.

 Although he butted heads with the coach and quit the team last year, Martins is back on the Super Eagles senior national team and he’s in it to win. Earlier today, he announced that he’s just there to score goals and help his team win. He’s at camp training hard at the moment, and even though he is a seasoned player, everything there—including the captain—is brand new to him.

Martins’ name is well known worldwide. He has been playing since he was a youth, first for the Ebedei team from 1999 to 2000. Then he played for Reggiana from 2000 to 2001, then Internazionale from 2001 to 2002. He was also on the Reggiana senior team from 2000 to 2001 and Internazionale from 2001 to 2006. He went on to play for Newcastle United from 2006 to 2009, then VfL Wolfsburg from 2009 to 2010. From 2010 to 2012 Martins was with Rubin Kazan, playing for Birmingham City in 2011 on loan. From 2012 to 2013 he played for Levante, and he’s been with the Sounders ever since 2013. He has played for the Nigerian national team since 2004.

In addition to his speed, Martins is well known for his power and presence on the field. He is also very passionate when it comes to scoring goals, making him a huge crowd pleaser. Since playing for the Sounders, Martins’ stats have been impressive. He’s started in 66 of the 72 games he’s been in during the regular season. During those, he played a total of 5,871 minutes and scored 40 goals. His passion has unfortunately also helped him receive three red cards and six yellow cards over the years.

Obafemi means “the king loves me” in Yoruba. Fans can follow Martins on Twitter at @Obamfemimartins, where he has over 66,000 followers. He posts news, photos and fun items for fans to see. In October, Martins launched his own website where fans can buy “Oba Gear” and find out more about the 14-year veteran player. Both of his brothers, Oladipupo Olarotini Martins and John Ronan Martins, have also been professional players.

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia