Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Taione Richard Evumena Sodje[1] | ||
Date of birth | 20 September 2003 | ||
Place of birth | Sheffield, England[1] | ||
Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)[1] | ||
Position(s) | Forward | ||
Team information | |||
Current team | Manchester City | ||
Number | 60 | ||
Youth career | |||
Years | Team | ||
Sheffield United | |||
2015– | Manchester City |
Taione Richard Evumena "Tai" Sodje (born 20 September 2003) is an English professional footballer currently playing as a forward for Manchester City.
Born in Sheffield to an English mother and Nigerian father,[2] Sodje began his footballing career with local side Sheffield United, before a switch to Premier League side Manchester City in 2015.[3] He signed a professional contract with Manchester City in July 2021.[4] Despite suffering an injury in late October 2021, which he described as the worst moment of his career,[2] he returned to action for Manchester City's youth teams in April 2022.[5]
Eligible to represent both England and Nigeria, Sodje reportedly turned down an invitation to the England under-19 squad in October 2021.[6] He was quoted in May 2022 as saying he would choose to represent whichever nation approached him first.[2][7]
Described by Manchester City as a "prolific goal-scorer" and a "versatile striker [who] can also operate to impressive effect on both the right or left flanks", Sodje describes himself as a "goal scorer", capable of playing "across the front three".[8]
Sodje is the son of former professional rugby league player Bright Sodje, and the nephew of former Nigerian international footballers Efe and Sam Sodje.[3][9]
Club | Season | League | FA Cup | EFL Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Manchester City U21 | 2021–22 | — | — | — | 2[a] | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||
2022–23 | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||||
Career total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |