By Oluwadamilola Olaleye
Veteran Nigerian defender Leon Balogun has officially signed a one-year deal with Cypriot First Division club Aris Limassol following the expiration of his contract with Rangers FC.
The 35-year-old joins the Cypriot champions on a free transfer and is expected to bring extensive top-flight experience to the squad.
Balogun has previously featured in the English Premier League with Brighton & Hove Albion and in the German Bundesliga with clubs such as Mainz 05 and Fortuna Düsseldorf.
At Aris Limassol, Balogun will reunite with former Rangers teammate Connor Goldson, with whom he shared a successful stint in the Scottish Premiership.
Internationally, Balogun has earned over 40 caps for Nigeria, representing the Super Eagles at the 2018 FIFA World Cup and helping the team secure third place at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.
He is expected to link up with his new teammates for pre-season training as Aris prepare for the 2025/26 campaign, which will include domestic title defense and European competition.
Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. On the back of domestic engagement since 2008, he began his international career journey 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.
