It was a weekend to forget for many Nigerian players across Europe’s top leagues, as several endured heavy defeats, injury setbacks, and limited playing time. PETER AKINBO reports.
SATURDAY
ENGLAND
Alex Iwobi, Calvin Bassey (Fulham)
Iwobi and Bassey had a frustrating outing as Fulham fell 2-0 at home to Crystal Palace. Iwobi, deployed on the wing, struggled to make an impact before being substituted in the 80th minute for Rodrigo Muniz.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Bassey played the full 90 minutes in defense but couldn’t prevent Fulham from failing to register a single shot on target—something that hadn’t happened since May 2021.
Joe Aribo, Paul Onuachu (Southampton)
Aribo was deployed in an unfamiliar defensive role as Southampton’s struggles continued with a crushing 4-0 defeat to Brighton. The midfielder played the full match, while Onuachu was introduced in the 72nd minute, replacing Cameron Archer.
The loss leaves Southampton bottom of the table, eight points behind Leicester and 13 from safety, with just 12 games remaining.
Semi Ajayi (West Brom)
Ajayi’s afternoon ended prematurely after picking up an injury in the 41st minute. He was replaced by Mason Holgate as West Brom secured a 2-0 victory over Oxford United. Goals from Alex Mowatt and John Swift lifted the Baggies to fifth in the Championship.
Emmanuel Dennis (Blackburn)
Dennis was introduced in the 56th minute but couldn’t prevent Blackburn from suffering a 3-0 defeat at Swansea City. The loss compounded a tough week for Rovers, coming just days after the sacking of manager Luke Williams following a poor run of eight defeats in ten games.
SPAIN
Umar Sadiq (Real Sociedad)
Sadiq started for Real Sociedad but was withdrawn in the 74th minute as his side slumped to a 3-0 defeat to Atletico Madrid. A brace from Julian Alvarez and a late goal from Angel Correa left Sociedad in the relegation zone.
GERMANY
Frank Onyeka (Augsburg)
Onyeka played 58 minutes before being substituted for Arne Maier in Augsburg’s impressive 3-0 away win over Borussia Monchengladbach. Alexis Claude-Maurice stole the show with a hat-trick.
Victor Boniface (Bayer Leverkusen)
Boniface continued his recovery from injury with a brief seven-minute cameo, replacing Patrik Schick in Leverkusen’s 2-0 victory over bottom-placed Holstein Kiel.
Fellow Nigerian Nathan Tella missed out due to injury, while goals from Schick and Amine Adli before halftime kept Leverkusen five points clear at the top.
ITALY
Fisayo Dele-Bashiru (Lazio)
Like Ajayi in England, Dele-Bashiru was forced off with an ankle injury in the 41st minute of Lazio’s goalless draw at Venezia. Before his withdrawal, the midfielder had completed 24 of 26 passes and recorded 30 touches. His injury could see him miss Nigeria’s upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Rwanda and Zimbabwe.
Samuel Chukwueze (AC Milan)
Chukwueze was handed just two minutes of action, coming on in the 88th minute as Milan suffered a 2-1 loss at Torino. An own goal and a quickly taken free-kick doomed the Rossoneri to defeat, adding to their woes after a midweek Champions League exit.
FRIDAY
ENGLAND
Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester)
Ndidi endured a tough night as Leicester’s survival hopes took another hit following a heavy 4-0 loss to Brentford at the King Power Stadium. The Nigerian midfielder played 77 minutes before making way for Oliver Skipp.
Leicester’s sixth consecutive Premier League home defeat without scoring set a new top-flight record. Goals from Yoane Wissa, Bryan Mbeumo, Christian Norgaard, and Fabio Carvalho left Ruud van Nistelrooy’s side second-bottom, two points from safety.
Kelechi Iheanacho (Middlesbrough)
Iheanacho’s struggles continued as Middlesbrough fell to a fifth straight defeat, losing 2-1 at Bristol City. The forward played 83 minutes but couldn’t prevent his side from surrendering their early lead.
Tommy Conway had put Boro ahead, but substitute George Earthy struck twice to turn the game around, increasing the pressure on manager Michael Carrick as Middlesbrough remained 11th in the Championship.
