By Monsurah Olatunji
Nigeria international Umar Sadiq has opened up about his decision to leave Real Sociedad and join Valencia on loan for the remainder of the season, with the possibility of a permanent transfer.
Sadiq, 27, made a record €20 million move to Real Sociedad from Almería in 2022.
However, he struggled to secure a regular starting spot, managing only seven appearances this season without scoring, adding to a total of four goals in 50 games for the Spanish club.
The Super Eagles striker had a much more successful stint at UD Almería, where he scored 43 goals and provided 13 assists in 84 appearances, contributing to their promotion to La Liga in 2021/22.
In his first press conference as a Valencia player, Sadiq explained that his move was motivated by the lack of consistent playing time at Real Sociedad.
“All footballers need consistency [regular football], and unfortunately, I didn’t get the continuity I wanted at Real Sociedad,” he said.
“I understand, though—sometimes players make decisions that don’t go as planned, and that’s just part of the game. It didn’t work out for me there, but that doesn’t mean it was a bad experience. I keep moving forward and hope things go well for me here at Valencia. I wish Real Sociedad all the best.”
Valencia, who currently sit second-bottom in La Liga with 12 points from 18 matches, will hope Sadiq’s goal-scoring ability can help them escape relegation and move up the league standings.
Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. He began his career at Goal.com in February 2014, where he served as an African women's football correspondent for nearly eight years. During his tenure at Goal.com, Samuel covered major events such as three Women's Africa Cup of Nations (2016, 2018, 2022) and the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada plus 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. His work at Goal.com earned him widespread acclaim, particularly for his in-depth profiles of African football stars, notably Asisat Oshoala, whose rise he documented from her early years to her breakthrough at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2014. Prior to his role at Goal.com, Samuel freelanced for various print and broadcast media outlets in Nigeria, including Graphics Newspaper, Radio Nigeria, Grace FM, and Savid Newspaper. His extensive experience and expertise led to his appointment to the Nigeria Football Federation's Standing Committee on Women's Football Development from 2016 to 2018. Since February 2018, Samuel has been the Social Media Manager for Nigeria's women's national teams.In 2019, Samuel joined the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as a women's football content contributor and was promoted to Women's Football Editor in 2021. His contributions to women's football continued as he worked as a Media Consultant for Content Creation and Editorials at the 2022 CAF Women's Champions League. Currently, Samuel also serves as the spokesman for the Nigeria Women Football League, further solidifying his influence and dedication to the growth of women's football in Africa.
