6/1/2023, Editorial Staff
22-year-old Nigerian stopper Igoh Ogbu joins Slavia from Norwegian Lilleström. The 2019 Under-20 World Cup participant has signed a contract at Eden until 31 December 2026.
“I think Igoh will be a good reinforcement for Slavia. The scouting and our analysts did a great job. The negotiations were long but fair, I want to thank the player’s agents and his former club Lilleström. And I wish Igoh the best of luck “, says the sporting director of Slavia Jiří Bílek.
“I feel great, I’m happy with how the club welcomed me, that I was able to sign here. Every player’s dream is to win trophies, leave a legacy in the club you’re moving to. It takes away unforgettable memories. I really hope to succeed in Slavia. I’m looking forward to the fans, I’ve seen some matches, like the derby, and I know what a great atmosphere they create. And I’m really looking forward to meeting my compatriots Peter Olayinka and Moses Usor “, he says after signing a four-year contract Igo Ogbu.
“He’s a player we’ve been talking about for a long time, we were already interested during the summer transfer market. He really caught our attention, but unfortunately it didn’t work out in the summer for many reasons. Our interest continued, we kept following him. After long and complicated negotiations, the transfer went through. We’re really happy with it, he’s the kind of player we were looking for,” he said Jindřich Trpišovský.
“He’s very good at speed, physically, he’s got a great head, he’s strong in fights. He’s an emphatic stopper type, but he’s also got speed, he’s able to play in pairs of stoppers and in trios. He has a natural combative, which obviously also includes some mistakes. But he is a young player we want to work with. He is a bit distantly reminiscent of Simon Deli when he started with us, an athletic guy, a great fighter. His style is a bit like hockey , sacrifices himself for shooting. He was very interested in coming to us, in the end we managed to make an agreement with his parent company, for which we are very happy” adds the head of the Slavia substitute.
The 22-year-old Nigerian stopper joins Slavia from Norway’s Lilleström, where he has been with since January 2021. It wasn’t his first engagement in Norway, in 2021, shortly after his 18th birthday, he moved from Gombe United FC of Nigeria to Rosenborg , where he made two guest appearances in the second highest competition.
The loan spell at Sogndal IL was particularly successful, which Ogbu helped secure a place guaranteeing a playoff spot for promotion to the top flight. In the summer of 2020 Sogndalu signed on a permanent basis, but after third place and a disappointing second play-off in a row, he moved to first division Lilleström.
The 187 centimeter tall stopper is dominant in land and air battles, he can also threaten forward, in last year’s Eliteserien he scored three times and scored one assist. He has a huge passing range, can accurately find teammates all over the field and in the run-up behind the defence.
Played three matches in European Conference League qualifying in the summer, Lilleström was eventually knocked out against Royal Antwerp of Belgium.
Igoh Ogbu has also represented Nigeria at youth level. He has started seven times in the under-20 category, each time in the starting lineup. He played two matches at the Under 20 World Cup.
