[nas] US Player of the Year - Gooch

Onyewu named US Soccer player of the year
AFP
December 26, 2006

CHICAGO (AFP) - Oguchi Onyewu, a World Cup defender of Nigerian 
heritage, was named US Soccer Player of the Year by the US Soccer 
Federation.

Onyewu was the first defender to take the award since Alexei Lalas in 
1995 in a vote that came 50 percent from internet ballots and 50 
percent from media and federation representatives.

The player handled difficult assignments against Czech striker Jan 
Koller and Italian star Luca Toni during the World Cup, where the 
Americans were eliminated in the first round.

"It's an honor to be recognized as one of the elite athletes of US 
Soccer," Onyewu said.

The 24-year-old son of Nigerian-born parents plays for Standard Liege 
in Belgium.

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