Nigeria Players Abroad
Francesca Ordega joins Ashleigh Plumptre in Saudi Arabia
By Oyediji Oluwaseun Babatunde
Nigeria forward Francisca Ordega has joined the Saudi Women’s Premier League club, Al Ittihad Ladies.
She completed the switch from the Russian women’s side, CSKA Moscow.
The Gboko, Benue State-born player has signed a two-year deal with the Saudi side, which will see her stay with the club till 2027.
The former Washington Spirit and Pitea IF player will team up with compatriot, Ashleigh Plumptre at her new club.
Plumptre, interestingly, is the captain of Al Ittihad Ladies, and she is in her second season in the league.
A member of the Super Falcons, Ordega played for Bayelsa Queens and Rivers Angels in the Nigeria Women Football League (NWFL) Premiership before moving abroad in 2012.
Her sojourn abroad started with Rossiyanka before switching to Pitea IF in Sweden.
From Sweden, her new destination was the United States of America (USA) where she featured for Washington Spirit from 2015 to 2018.
She was on loan at Sydney FC (Australia) and Atletico Madrid (Spain) before completing a move to Shanghai Shengli in China.
2021 witnessed her move to Levante UD in Spain and joined CSKA Moscow the same year.
A member of the Super Falcons since 2010, Ordega also played for Nigeria at U-17 and U-20 levels.
