Former Super Eagles winger John Utaka has set his sights on a new career goal, to become the first African to win the UEFA Champions League as a Coach.

Utaka achieved success in 2008 as part of the Portsmouth team that won the English FA Cup alongside Nwankwo Kanu, and has since moved into coaching.

In 2020, the former Portsmouth ace opened his own academy. Two years later, he was appointed as assistant coach to the Montpellier U19s.

Now, Utaka is on the path to obtaining his UEFA Pro badge, having already acquired his UEFA A license in 2022.

“If the opportunity comes to coach a team in Europe, I will embrace it,” Utaka told DW.

“My dream is to win the trophies that I didn’t win as a player. I want to win them as a coach. We’ve never had an African coach win the Champions League. That is a goal for me.”