Gift Orban: Hoffenheim’s Nigeria-Togo striker linked with surprise Amed SK switch

Gift Orban, the Nigeria-Togo centre-forward currently at Hoffenheim, is being linked with a surprise move to Turkish Super Lig side Amed SK. The 23-year-old, who only returned to the Bundesliga club this summer after a loan in Italy, is under contract until 30 June 2029, making any deal likely to be complex and potentially expensive for the Turkish club.

Hoffenheim signed Orban from Lyon in January 2025 for a reported €9m fee and he has since added Bundesliga experience to a CV that already includes spells in Ligue 1, Serie A, Belgium and Norway. He scored four goals in 13 Bundesliga appearances, having earlier hit seven goals and three assists in 28 Serie A outings during a loan stint with Hellas Verona, where he completed 2,038 minutes in Italy’s top flight.

Amed SK’s interest comes at a time when Orban’s market value stands at around €7m, a figure that offers some context to the scale of investment required to tempt Hoffenheim into negotiations for a player tied down on a long-term deal. The forward first came to wider attention with a prolific spell at Stabæk in Norway’s OBOS-ligaen, where he scored 16 goals in 22 games and was named best young player in 2022 before earning a move to KAA Gent and then Lyon.

Orban’s most explosive impact in continental competition came in the Europa Conference League, where he registered 10 goals in 11 appearances, underlining his scoring potential on the European stage. For now, he remains a Hoffenheim player with three years left on his contract and is due to report for pre-season duties in Germany unless talks with Amed SK progress significantly.