Paul Michael Okon Engstler was born in Sydney on April 5, 1972.
He started his career with the Marconi Stallions, playing 49 league games and scoring 4 goals.
In1991 he joined Club Brugge where he played five seasons and 72 league games with 1 goal (with 1 league title and 4 domestic cups). In 1995 he was voted Player of the Year in Belgium.
Paul Okon arrived at Lazio in 1996. He then stayed three years in Rome.
In 1996-97 the manager was first Zdenek Zeman and then Dino Zoff. Lazio finished 4th (UEFA Cup). The highlight was beating Milan 3-0 while both derbies were draws. Okon played 14 league games, 2 in Coppa Italia and 2 in the UEFA Cup. His playing time was limited by physical problems.
In 1997-98 Sven-Goran Eriksson arrived as manager. Lazio had a good season, finishing 7th in Serie A but winning the Coppa Italia and reaching the UEFA Cup final, losing to Inter in Paris. The Eagles also beat Roma a record four times in a season. Okon unfortunately was out all season injured.
In 1998-99 Lazio went close to the scudetto finishing 2nd but won the Supercoppa beating Juventus and the last ever Cup Winners Cup beating Mallorca 2-1. Again, Okon played little, only 5 league games due to injuries.
In 1999-2000 he played for Fiorentina under Giovanni Trapattoni. The Viola finished 7th (UEFA Cup) and Okon played 11 league games, 1 in Coppa and 4 in the Champions League.
He then went to England and played for Middlesbrough (28 league games), Watford on loan (15 league games) and Leeds United (21 league games). He was not a great success and still hindered by physical problems.
In 2003 he returned to Italy and played for Vicenza in Serie B. He played 11 league games, under manager Giuseppe Iachini, before returning to Belgium in January and joining Oostende, in the second tier, where he finally played regularly for a season and a half (44 league games).
He then played a season in Cyprus for APOEL (12 league games) before returning to Australia and the Newcastle Jets for one last season (17 league games).
He won 29 caps for Australia and reached the Olympic semi-final in Barcelona 1992.
Okon was a midfielder. He could play in various roles including playmaker. He was an excellent player with great feet, vision and tactical intelligence. In Belgium in 1995 he was awarded the Golden Boot for the best player of the season. His career however was limited by injuries and physical problems which did not allow him to reach his full potential.
At Lazio, especially in his first season, he showed glimpses of his immense class and talent. He was nicknamed "Il Poeta" for others he was, maybe a little far-fetched, "The Australian Beckenbauer". At Lazio he won three cups.
After retiring he became a manager, working in Australia and Belgium.
Lazio Career
Season | Total appearances | Serie A | Coppa Italia | UEFA Cup |
1996-97 | 18 | 14 | 2 | 2 |
1998-99 | 5 | 5 | - | - |
Total | 23 | 19 | 2 | 2 |
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