Al Hilal striker, Odion Ighalo, says he could someday return to Europe to play topflight football before his retirement.
The 32-year-old is currently enjoying one of the best seasons of his career, scoring 23 goals in 29 games across all competitions for Saudi Arabian sides Al Shabab and Al Hilal. The former Watford striker joined Hilal on loan from Al Shabab during the January transfer window.
Ighalo previously made a return to Europe’s topflight league, joining English Premier League giants Manchester United on loan while playing for Chinese Super League side Shanghai Shenhua in 2020. While with the Red Devils, the Nigerian scored five goals and provided one assist in 23 matches, with one of his goals voted the Europa League Goal of The Week.
His impressive performance in the Gulf orchestrated his return to the national team but failed to inspire Nigeria to their seventh World Cup campaign later this year, as he played just 12 minutes in the play-off versus Ghana.
Ighalo, who has also played in Serie A and LaLiga believes he can still play in Europe.
“In football you can never say never, today I’m enjoying my career in Saudi Arabia today but tomorrow I could be back in Europe playing. At the moment I’m happy where I am but I’ll be happy to return to Europe someday,” Ighalo told PUNCH Sports Extra.”
The former Granada player has been one of Nigeria’s most prolific strikers in history, having scored 185 goals in 415 professional career appearances.
Article first published on the Punch Website
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