Serbian powerhouse Red Star Belgrade has completed the signing of Khalifa Umar , the younger brother of Nigeria international forward Sadiq Umar.

Khalifa is a forward like his elder brother and like his brother he was signed from Future of Africa Academy in Kaduna. The deal is for four years with the option of another year.

He will be hoping for similar success like his elder brother Sadiq had at the rivals of his new team Partizan Belgrade. 25 year old Sadiq who is now at Almeria scored 23 goals with 19 assists in 52 games in two seasons in Serbia.

Speaking on Khalifa, award winning Kaduna journalist Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman says he is more skillful than his elder brother, who is however more refined owing to experience.

” He (Khalifa) is more skillful and very quick. Dribbles really well and has nice techniques. Football runs in their family. His father played for defunct Ranchers Bees of Kaduna, he was very famous back then and was nicknamed Mega. His two sons are following in his footsteps”, he told OwnGoalNigeria.com.

Nigeria international forward Sadiq Umar scored his second goal of the season to power Almeria to their first win in the La Liga with a 2-1 win over Sevilla.

Sadiq opened his goal account last weekend in a 1-1 draw against Elche and he showed his predatory instinct to go past his man and tap into an open net to seal a 2-1 win over Sevilla. The goal ten minutes into the second half decided the game.

He is well on course to match his record from the last two seasons where he was top scorer for Almeria , lifting them to promotion to the La Liga. However his future still remains uncertain.

Speaking after the game against Sevilla, Umar who was linked with a move to Sevilla, Getafe, Villareal and also Atalanta will be allowed to leave the club at the right price according to the general manager of the team.

“If we have the price that we want, we will seel him”, Mohammed El Assy was quoted as saying by DAZN. Almeria want a fee of €30 million for the lanky forward who still has three year to run on his deal at the club.

English Championship side QPR are still in the business of strengthening their squad ahead of what they see as a campaign to return to the English Premier League.

QPR have won only one of their five games this season which was the 3-2 win over Middlesbrough. In all games this season they have failed to keep a clean sheet making reinforcement in defence a priority.

To that extent they have officially announced a deal to sign 34 year old Nigeria international defender Leon Balogun on a free transfer following the expiration of his deal at Scottish side Rangers.

The deal is a one year deal and it affords him the chance to link up with his former coach at Rangers Mick Beale. Balogun credit his move to the presence of the coach at the English Championship side. “He is obsessed with football and what I always admire about him is the way he treated the players, and the way he got ideas into your mind,” Balogun said of the manager in his first interview as a player of the club.

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Despite denial from the camp of Nigerian forward Victor Osimhen, Sky Sports journalist Francesco Modugno insist talks is still going on the proposed swap deal involving Osimhen and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Reports broke out yesterday evening that Ronaldo has been offered on loan to Napoli in a deal which will see Osimhen move to Manchester United as his replacement for a fee of around €100m.

Osimhen’s agent Roberto Calenda earlier today denied the reports and insisted that his client is focused on having a fine season at Napoli, where he has found the back of the net consecutively in the first two games of the new Serie A season.

“There are no negotiations or swap deal talks in progress. Osimhen’s Napoli player and he wants to play Champions League with Napoli, he’s proud of being in UCL”, Calenda was quoted as saying.

However Modugno insist talks are underway but it all depends on the camp of Osimhen accepting the proposal from Ronaldo’s entourage led by super star agent Jorge Mendes.

In an interview which was watched by OwnGoalNigeria.com editorial team, the respected journalist summed up the entire situation as quoted below.

“Cristiano Ronaldo wants to play the Champions League and Jorge Mendes is working for this. The sentiment could lead him to Portugal, in the last week he has knocked on the doors of Bayern Munich and Milan. Then there is Napoli: his friend De Laurentiis has listened to the proposal, evaluates, reflects and does the accounts.

At the moment it is a more or less strong suggestion. It depends on the mood, on the tweet of Osimhen’s agent who said he wants to stay in Naples and denied the exchange with the Portuguese.

We are in a phase in which Jorge Mendes is trying to understand if the conditions can be created to start the negotiation which is linked to two conditions: United should take on all or almost all the salary of the Portuguese and then arrive in Naples and offer at least 100 million for Osimhen “.

The future of several players remained unresolved despite the fact that the summer transfer window has one more weeks to go in most of the major leagues in Europe.

Players and their representatives are now pulling the strings to ensure that their clients get the best for their career, but so too are teams who are either keen on holding on to their key players or otherwise.

French Ligue 1 side Nantes have taken a stand on the future of Nigeria international winger Moses Simon, who has been linked to several teams in France and even around Europe.

Coach of the team Antoine Kombouare has already told the owners of the team that they can’t afford to lose the 27 year old Nigerian. Particularly this late in the transfer window as it will be difficult to find his type of player with the limited time available.

This has already been made known to the representatives of Simon who were pushing for the club to accept a proposal from Rennes. Nice were the other side in the French Ligue 1 to have made a bid for the winger.

Outside France, a host of teams which includes the English Premier League trio of Newcastle United, Brighton and Hove Albion and Nottingham Forest checked on his availability but were told he is keen on remaining in France due to family reasons.

The Spanish La Liga will enter into matchday three this weekend with all teams expected to be in action in continuation of the 2022/2023 season.

After two rounds of games and with the transfer window still open, teams are making attempts at solving issues detected after the first two games or signing players to correct them.

The above scenario means the future of a whole lot of players is still up in the air and it includes that of Nigeria international forward Sadiq Umar of Almeria. He opened his goal account last weekend in a 1-1 draw against Elche.

Sadiq is linked with a host of teams not just in Spain but around Europe. His coach however believe keeping him will be a master stroke as most teams in the league are wary of the threat the 25 year old carries.

“I see Sadiq as phenomenal on a day-to-day basis, unbeatable. In games there are things that he can do better and then there are other situations in which he helps us a lot”, coach of Almeria Rubi said at the pre match conference ahead of tomorrow’s game against Sevilla.

“If you ask any rival, one of the two or three opponents who most intimidates one of them is Sadiq. In principle I have nothing new and he will play with all the desire of the world”, he concluded.

Belgium top division side Genk look certain to build on their strong relationship with Nigerian players as they are close to conclude a deal to sign another Nigerian.

Currently the team has one Nigerian on their books in Paul Onuachu but this is so because of the departure of Cyriel Dessers few weeks ago. Prior to his leaving the team Stephen Odey also left for Denmark.

Onuachu who is still at the club will likely be joined by Yira Sor Collins of Slavia Prague in a deal that could see the former Nigeria U20 winger become their most expensive signing ever.

According to Voetbalnieuws, Genk have already tabled an offer of €10m to the Czech Republic side for the 22 year old. Both parties are now trashing out the final details of the deal.

A member of the 2019 Nigeria U20 team to the World Cup, he had a season to remember last term out scoring particularly in the Europa Conference League where he scored six goals in six games. He is a product of the famous 36 Lions FC based in Lagos.

The international future of Brighton and Hove Albion latest debutant Odele Offiah is as good as resolved despite strong interest from England, who are watching his progress, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

Offiah made his debut for the English Premier League side in a 3-0 win over Forest Green. He was a 67th minute substitute for Deniz Undav as they book their passage to the next round of the tournament, where they will face Arsenal.

Born in England to Nigerian parents, the 19 year old who is comfortable as a centre back or full back is eligible for both countries but his sight is on representing Nigeria. Something which was made public three years ago before he turned 17.

“I am certain in the knowledge as a professional football scout that Odele is not only better than players in your current under 17 squad, but will undoubtedly improve your current squad’s chances of winning national tournaments,” the source told Completesports.com in 2019.

The source however warned that if the Nigeria national team handlers continue to ignore him then he might probably give in to pressure to play for England if he get called up.

“Ultimately, if Nigeria do not select him, at some stage England will! I
simply can’t understand how he has gone under Nigeria’s radar.”

The Italian media was awash with stories about Cristiano Ronaldo joining Napoli yesterday evening.  A move which will see Victor Osimhen move in the opposite direction to join Manchester United.

Per a report on Tuttosport, the next big media outlet to report the news after Sky Italy. The move is currently being put together by the agent of Cristiano Ronaldo who is keen for his client to play in the UEFA Champions League. Which is on offer at Napoli.

Jorge Mendes approached Napoli with a smart idea on how the move will happen including how Ronaldo will join on loan while Osimhen will move to Manchester United for a fee of €100m payable in three years. In addition to that Osimhen will earn around £10m a year. A massive upgrade on what he presently earns at Napoli.

Mendes has already identified how Napoli will be able to cope with Ronaldo’s salary of around £23.5m a year. Already the first two months totalling £4m has been paid and for the remaining £20m, he said Man Utd will pay 75% while Napoli takes up the rest.

Already the agent of Osimhen Roberto Calenda has been briefed about the move and while he is keen on his client spending another year with the Italian side. The amount proposed in the deal is forcing him to have a rethink and consider the offer.

Osimhen is also looking very sharp this season with two goals in his first two games of the season. He could however end the rest of the season at a new club if the explanation by Tuttosport is anything to go by.

Italian Serie A champions AC Milan came into the summer transfer window needing reinforcement in midfield following the departure of Franck Kessie on a free transfer to Barcelona.

Kessie’s departure created a void that the technical hierarchy of the team were tasked with filling before the close of the transfer window. That led to a list of targets out of which they settled for Nigerian midfielder Raphael Onyedika.

They swung into action almost immediately by submitting a bid to his club FC Midtjylland but the bid which is said to be around €4m was rejected by the Danish side. Another bid of around €6m was also rejected.

Milan were told it will cost at least €10m to prize the Nigerian, a fee they consider excessive hence walked away from the deal and reports has it that they have move to other options on their list.

For Onyedika, it’s looking likely that he won’t stay at the club despite the fact the move to Milan won’t be happening. Belgium side Club Brugge are close to signing him for around €5m. A deal that the player and club feel is better for his development.

Onyedika wasn’t sold on the idea of going to Milan because he isn’t sure of getting game time. Something that he has been promised at the Belgium side. He feels regular playing time will aid his development and place him in good position for a better move in the future.