Birthplace: Hackney

An iconic character at the club Ade has worked hard for his place in the Burnley first team in the 2007/08 season. The much travelled striker has been a thorn in opposition's side since the first kick of the season in August 2007.

His never say die attitude is appreciated by the clarets faithful game after game. Ade scored 9 goals in the season providing assists for his team mates on many occasions.

The aerial threat combined with his pace, strength and vision for the back of the net he possesses will prove to be an asset in the clarets 2008/09 campaign.

Burnley started 2007 with a bang by re-signing Ade Akinbiyi. And after taking time to settle back in familiar surroundings, big things are expected of the big striker in the coming campaign.

The Sheffield United striker happily rejoined the Clarets less than 12 months after leaving Turf Moor for Bramall Lane in a club record £1.75m outgoing transfer deal.

Akinbiyi, who cost Burnley £650,000 with a further £100,000 payable in the summer, put pen to paper on January 1^st, signing a two-and-a-half year deal.

However, a lack of general match fitness hampered the pacy striker and he never fully hit the ground running as in his previous spell, where he scored 16 Championship goals in just 38 starts after signing for £600,000 from Stoke City in February 2005.

Burnley's leading goalscorer was eventually reluctantly sold to Sheffield United following a protracted series of bidding by the Yorkshire club. The fourth saw him leave as the club's record outgoing transfer.

However, after crossing the Pennines, Akinbiyi started just 12 games for the Blades and made a total of 18 appearances.

Akinbiyi began his career with Norwich City in the early 1990s but after struggling to make a real breakthrough at Carrow Road, he moved on to GIllingham in a £250,000 move in 1997.

At the Priestfield Stadium he made a real impression in the old Second Division and less than two years later Bristol City shelled out £1.2 million to take him to Ashton Gate in the summer of 1998.

The goals continued to flow there, but he couldn't prevent the Robins from relegation and only a year after arriving in the West Country he was on the move again as Wolverhampton Wanderers paid out £3.5 million for him.

Again, his good form continued at Molineux and that was enough to tempt Leicester City into paying £5 million for his services in July 2000.

It was whilst with the Foxes that Ade first hit something of a blip as he found goals hard to come by in the Premiership with a struggling side under Peter Taylor.

There were no shortage of teams interested in signing him though and Crystal Palace ended his time at Filbert Street in February 2002 when they paid £2.2 million for him.

It was an injury ravaged stay at Selhurst Park though and he was on the move again a year after signing, joining Stoke City on loan in the late stages of the 2002/03 season.

His goals in that spell were a major reason in the Potters surviving in the First Division and not long into the following season he signed for Stoke on a permanent basis, again linking up with Tony Pulis the manager who first signed him for Gillingham all those years before.

The Britannia Stadium became something of a spiritual home for Ade and his work rate, commitment and goalscoring made him a cult figure amongst the supporters, as was - and contionues to be the case at Turf Moor!