German second division side Hannover 96 are leading the race to sign out of favor Super Eagles midfielder Uche Agbo following the relegation of Deportivo La Coruna where he spent the season on loan from Standard Liege of Belgium.

He was signed by the relegated second division side in January as they aim to beat the drop to the third division but he failed to inspire them to keep their status and although the club have the option of signing him permanently, it’s highly unlikely that they will sign him this summer.

Hannover 96 who only recently signed another Nigerian in forgotten Super Eagles forward Solomon Okoronkwo are currently leading the race to sign him for one million euros.

That was the amount agreed with Deportivo La Coruna for his permanent signing and it is believed it will be okay for Standard Liege if Hannover 96 offers same amount.

Malaga are the other team interested in the 24 year old who was a part of the Gernot Rohr squad form 2016 to 2018 but didn’t get to play a single game despite making all the squad for qualifiers and friendly games .

Sebastian Osigwe has made a shock move to FC Lugano on a free transfer from second division side SC Kriens, owngoalnigeria.com reports.

26 year old Osigwe made 20 appearances for Kriens in the second division but did enough to catch the attention of top division side Lugano.

He left Kriens on a free transfer and was announced as a player of Lugano by the president of the club alongside two others as their first acquisition ahead of the start of a new season.

His rise has been remarkable in the last three years as he rose from the third division to the first division in just three years with two of the years coming at SC Kriens.

The move has no doubt put him in the frame for a call up to the senior national team of Nigeria, one of the things he said will be a dream come true for him after failing to make the Under-20 team of 2013.

Serie A side Atalanta have failed with their opening bid for Club Brugge Nigerian forward Enmanuel Dennis Bonaventure, Owngoalnigeria.com exclusively gathered.

Dennis has reached a verbal agreement with the champions of Belgium that he can leave the club this summer if a transfer fee in the region of €25 million is lodged by any interested team.

A host of teams are believed to be tracking the wing forward who can also play as top striker but the first club to put in a big officially is Atalanta and it falls below what Club Brugge are demanding.

It’s still unclear if the Serie A surprise team of last season will make an improved offer for the 22 year old who finished last season with nine goals in 35 games in all competitions including two against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu in the UEFA Champions League .

He has two senior international caps to his name for Nigeria as he appeared as a substitute in the two friendly games they played against Ukraine and Brazil respectively last year.

Kaduna born ex Flying Eagles trainee Emmanuel Apeh has ended his two year stay with Laliga side Celta Vigo following his move to Tenerife.

His signing to Tenerife was a free transfer after the expiration of his deal at Celta Vigo and subsequent futile attempt to agree on an extension of his contract at the team.

Last season he scored 12 goals in 25 matches for the B team of Celta Vigo in the Spanish second division. In history he is the all time top scorer of the B team of the Laliga side but he leaves with the team with only two top flight appearances to his team.

At 23 he will be looking to establish himself at Tenerife in a league where he once turned out for Lorca and scored three goals in 24 games three years ago.

The forward who is blessed with pace, skills and precise finishing in the box trained with the Manu Garba U20 team of 2013 before his move to Spain where he joined RCD Alcala. He has spent all of his career in the county since then.

The decision to let Victor Osimhen leave Wolfsburg before the start of the 2018 season is one that proved to be a poorly taken decision base on how he exploded at Charleroi where he spent the season on loan.

Osimhen was told by ex Wolfsburg coach Bruno Labbadia that he is surplus to requirements hence a loan move with an option to buy him permanently for around €3 million was agreed with Charleroi.

He became an instant hit at the club and they in turn took up the option to sign him permanently before trading him off to Lille for around €12 million a year later .

After one season at Lille, where he scored 16 goals he has now made a record €80 million move to Napoli making Wolfsburg decision to let him leave for €3 million more disappointing.

“ It wasn’t my decision because I was new at the club back then. Collectively we agreed that a loan move will be of help to him but the decision to sell him wasn’t made by me. The club board of directors did “, Bruno Labbadia who was coach at the time said.

Michael James 

Fringe Nigeria international Josh Maja is reportedly pushing for a move to English Premier League side West Ham despite an offer from Scottish Premier League giants Rangers.

Maja is wanted by coach Steven Gerrard who is bracing up for the possible departure of star striker Alfredo Morellos before the end of the ongoing summer transfer window and he sees Maja as a like for like replacement.

Coach of West Ham David Moyes who have the forward his breakthrough at Sunderland is showing interest in having the striker once again with Bordeaux opened to his departure to raise cash for their own squad rebuild .

On his part , the 20 year old Nigerian has his eyes fixed on making the senior National team of Nigeria hence prefers a move to West Ham ahead of Rangers .

According to one of his representatives, Maja will prefer to remain at Bordeaux beyond this summer than drop a level to the SPL by joining Rangers as it could affect his chances with the senior national team of Nigeria .

Coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Gernot Rohr has switched attention to Fulham midfielder Josh Onomah following his dazzling display for as his team secure promotion to the English Premier League at the expense of Brentford.

Yesterday Onomah was solid for Fulham in their 2-1 win over Brentford in the Championship promotion play offs and that performance sealed his spot in the heart of Rohr.

Rohr has been tracking the former Tottenham Hotspur teen star for a while but his form after the restart confirmed that he is ready for a shot at international football with the senior national team of Nigeria.

However, he will be needing a switch of allegiance as he has represented England at various youth levels but at the age of 22 he should be considering his options with Nigeria looking like his most viable option for international football.

Rohr is however undeterred as he only want the midfielder to commit his future to Nigeria on time so that he can file for a switch of allegiance process with FIFA before the start of qualification for the 2022 World Cup.

He appears to have jumped ahead of QPR star Ebere Eze who hasn’t covered himself in glory with the way he has gone about switching allegiance to Nigeria after thrice refusing to file in papers for switch of allegiance.

Slovakian side AS Trencin is widely viewed as a stepping stone for several Nigerian players with the likes of Moses Simon, Samuel Kalu and Kingsley Madu who are senior international for Nigeria passing through the team.

However since the exit of Hilary Gong who have been hampered by injuries since his move to Dutch side Vitesse Arnhem, the trend of Nigerian players using the club as a springboard to achieving big things in Europe appears to have eroded .

Philip Azango was expected to be the star at Gent after impressing for Trencin in the Europa League but the former Plateau United winger never got going at the club unlike the duo of Moses Simon and Samuel Kalu.

Azango spent two seasons at the club but only played 26 minutes of football in the Belgium top flight league and 66 minutes in the Belgium Cup. Although he wasn’t at his best physically due to injuries, sources claim he was so off the pace that the club wasted no time in severing ties with him.

Rueben Yem was resigned by the club few years after turning up for their youth team. Yem came to the club with a different agency from the one that first gave him a chance at same club as an 18 year old.

He fared worst than all of the players as he could only get one game for the Reserve team. For the two years he spent at the club he was mostly not considered a player at the level of the club hence his return to Trencin.

Ironically both players appear to be paying the price of their disloyalty as they have yet to attain the height expected of them since turning their back on the agency and people that helped them kick start their career in Europe.

Highly rated Nigerian winger Hilary Gong is back in training with Dutch side Vitesse Arnhem after successful completing a two week isolation upon his return from Nigeria.

The 21 year old is tipped to have his breakthrough at the club next season with injuries and fitness issues slowing him down since his move in 2018.

He recently got married in Nigeria and upon resuming for pre season training he was isolated for two weeks in respect to the requirements by the government in Holland for visitors as the aim to curb the spread of coronavirus.

He joined the rest of his teammates in training on Monday and he showed no sign of the player who suffered so many setbacks last season before finally opting for a surgery in the second half of last season.

Now fully fit he will be hoping to force his way into the plans of new coach of the team Thomas Letsch who is a big admirer of the Nigerian and tried signing him while he was at the helm at Red Bull Salzburg.

Osas Mahawi 

Wilfred Ndidi, Leicester City’s sent a tweet to his club and team-mates saying how disappointing it was to finish fifth in the Premiership, having enjoyed a top-four position for so long. He went on to say that when all is said and done, it was nonetheless a successful season.

He also paid tribute to the fans, thanking them for being with the team even though the stadium was empty due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the social distancing rules. He concluded by saying it was a season to learn from and to use as a platform for growing into next season. He signed-off with a blue heart emoji.

One has to wonder, though. Will the 23-year-old be wearing a blue shirt next season, or will he succumb to offers from Premiership clubs with bigger reputations and perhaps a chance to play Champions League football with them in the 2020/2012 season?

Earlier in the season, the Foxes were looking good for a Champions League place and stood a chance of winning the FA Cup. Their Cup hopes were dashed by Chelsea, who beat then 1-0 in the quarter-finals.

Then, on the very last day of Premiership action, they lost 2-0 at the King Power Stadium to Manchester United, who before the game, were one place below them in fifth position in the table. United leapfrogged City and stole their fourth-place finish.

For gifted young players like 23-year-old Nigerian born Wilfred Ndidi, it’s all about winning trophies. When he joined Leicester in the January 2017 transfer window, the club had been crowned Premiership champions just eight months earlier, but that season they finished the season in 12th place. He was taken on as a defensive midfielder, a role that statistically is one of the most successful according to this season’s statistics.

He settled in well and is now recognised as one of the best defensive midfielders in the world with many pundits forecasting he will end up at one of the major European clubs – perhaps even Real Madrid.

There have been rumours previously about Manchester United being interested in signing the young Nigerian. With Leicester missing out on a Champions League place, such speculation suddenly becomes more credible.

Although rumour has mostly featured Manchester United in terms of a Ndidi move, it would not be surprising if Spurs’ manager, Jose Mourinho, was interested. Tottenham does need a good defensive midfielder, and the Nigerian would certainly fit the bill. Whether Ndidi would see the move as a step up is difficult to say, but he does hold the Portuguese manager in high esteem and might see himself fitting his plans for the team.

If Ndidi does make it known that he wants to move, one thing is for sure. There will be no shortage of top clubs, both here in English Premiership and top league clubs throughout Europe, who would be interested in acquiring his services.