TARIBO WEST

Born: 26 March 1974

Came from: Al-Arabi   Went to: Released

First game: 27 August 2005   Last game: 20 September 2005

Appearances: 5 (5/0)   Goals: 0

West spent a disappointing three months at Home Park, playing just five times and failing to live up to his international profile. He began his career in his native Nigeria with Sharks Port Harcourt, Obanta United, Enugu Rangers and Julius Berger. He transferred to Auxerre, winning both the French League and Cup before a move to Inter Milan. After helping Inter to win the UEFA Cup, he made a surprising switch to AC Milan, who released him after just 10 months. Short spells followed with Derby County and Kaiserslautern before a move to Partizan Belgrade, with whom he reached the group stages of the Champions League. West then spent a year with Al-Arabi in Qatar before joining Argyle.

His arrival at Home Park was delayed due to passport problems which saw him unavailable for the first five games of the season. After disappointing performances and the arrival of Tony Pulis, West was told he was not part of the new manager's plans and was released. He returned to play for Julius Berger and also had a short spell with Iranian side Paykan.

He represented his country at two World Cups and was also a member of the team which won the Gold Medal at the 1996 Olympics. Throughout his career it was suggested that West was much older than he claimed, 'proven' by a report that showed he played for the Nigerian under-20 team at the age of 18, some 8 years after first playing in the Nigerian First Division.