Macdonald Ngwa Niba (born 8 August 1994) is a Cameroonian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for the Thunder Bay Chill in USL League Two.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Macdonald Ngwa Niba | ||
| Date of birth | 8 August 1994[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Buea, Cameroon | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Centre-back | ||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| University of Buea | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2012–2014 | Cinyodev FC | ||
| 2016 | North Toronto Nitros | 18 | (7) |
| 2017–2019 | Nitra | 52 | (2) |
| 2019–2020 | Honvéd Budapest | 8 | (0) |
| 2020–2021 | Doxa Drama | 5 | (0) |
| 2021 | KuPS | 5 | (0) |
| 2021 | → KuFu-98 (loan) | 1 | (0) |
| 2022–2023 | Atlético Ottawa | 28 | (0) |
| 2024– | Thunder Bay Chill | 0 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 10 September 2023 | |||
Early life
In his native Cameroon, Niba attended the University of Buea, where he played for the school's football team, being named the team's best player in the 2013-14 season, and also played for Cinyodev FC.[2]
Club career
In 2016 season, he played for the North Toronto Nitros in the Canadian third tier League1 Ontario, making his debut on 30 April against Vaughan Azzurri.[3] He scored his first goal on May 8, against Toronto Skillz FC.[4] Over the course of the season, he played 18 league matches, scoring seven goals.[5] That season, he was named a Mid-Season All-Star, was named to the year-end League1 Ontario All-Star Team and was also named Defender of the Year.[6][7]
On 27 February 2017, Niba signed with Slovakian 2. Liga club FC Nitra.[6] On 22 July 2017 Niba made his Fortuna Liga debut against Žilina.[8] In his first four matches, he was named man of the match three times, also earning Player Of The Week honours once and being named to the Team of the Week each time.[9] That season he made eight appearances for Nitra, scoring two goals and helping the club earn promotion to the Fortuna Liga.[10]
In 2019, he joined Hungarian club Budapest Honvéd FC.[11] In 2020, he won the Hungarian Cup with Honved, entering the finals as a 95th minute substitute.[12] During his season with Honvéd, he dealt with some injuries, as well as the interruption of the season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[13]
In October 2020, he joined Doxa Drama F.C. in the Greek second tier.[14]
In April 2021, he joined Finnish first tier side KuPS on a one-year contract until December 2021.[15] In May, they won the 2021 Finnish Cup.[16]
On 26 January 2022, Niba returned to Canada, signing a two-year contract with Canadian Premier League side Atlético Ottawa.[17] Niba was released after his contract expired in the 2023 off-season.[18]
In April 2024, he signed with USL League Two club Thunder Bay Chill.[19]
International career
In 2017, he was named to the Cameroon U23 preliminary squad for the 2017 Islamic Solidarity Games,[20] although he did not make the final roster.
Career statistics
- As of match played 10 September 2023[21]
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| North Toronto Nitros | 2016[5] | League1 Ontario | 18 | 7 | — | 1 | 0 | — | — | 19 | 7 | |||
| FC Nitra | 2016-17 | 2. Liga | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 8 | 2 | |||
| 2017-18 | Slovak First Football League | 26 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 28 | 0 | ||||
| 2018-19 | 18 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 21 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 52 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 57 | 2 | ||
| Honvéd | 2019-20 | OTP Bank Liga | 8 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 2[a] | 0 | — | 13 | 0 | ||
| Doxa Dramas | 2020-21 | Super League Greece 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 5 | 0 | |||
| KuPS | 2021 | Veikkausliiga | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 4[b] | 0 | — | 6 | 0 | ||
| KuFu-98 (loan) | 2021 | Kakkonen | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Atlético Ottawa | 2022 | Canadian Premier League | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 0[c] | 0 | 17 | 0 | ||
| 2023 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 13 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 28 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 117 | 2 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 137 | 9 | ||
Honours
Individual
- League1 Ontario Defender of the Year: 2016
- League1 Ontario All-Star: 2016
Club
- Hungarian Cup: 2019–20
- Finnish Cup: 2021
- Canadian Premier League Regular Season: 2022
References
External links
- Macdonald Niba at Soccerway
- Macdonald Niba at FootballDatabase.eu
- Macdonald Niba at WorldFootball.net
- Macdonald Niba at Atlético Ottawa