European leagues round-up: Akpoguma and Aina are solid, disappointing outing for Onyedika

It was an eventful Saturday for Nigerian players as they were involved for their sides in their various fixtures around Europe. Soccernet gives a review of the performances of some of these Nigerian stars.

 

In the Italian Serie A, it was a good outing for Ola Aina as he helped Torino to a hard-fought goalless draw at home to Lazio.

After the Super Eagles fullback returned from the Africa Cup of Nations earlier in the year, Torino coach Ivan Juric stopped giving Aina minutes on the bench, fuelling talks of a possible Premier League move.

However, Aina has started Torino’s first two games and he has churned out decent performances. Against Lazio, the former Chelsea man recorded 72 touches, two successful dribbles, and a 78 percent pass accuracy.

The draw leaves Torino in third, albeit they would drop when the Sunday games are concluded.

 

Also in the Serie A, it was an ineffective evening for Isaac Success, as his Udinese side held out for a goalless draw at home to Salernitana.

Success got the nod to start his second Serie A game of the season for Udinese, but it did not go as planned.

Salernitana matched everything the Bianconeri put forward in the first half. Udinese’s woes were further compounded by a red card to Nehuen Perez just before halftime.

As expected, Salernitana dominated the second half, but they were profligate in front of goal. Both sides settled for a 0-0 stalemate.

Success had three successful dribbles, won three fouls, and created one goalscoring opportunity. The result leaves Udinese in 13th, pending the result of the Sunday fixtures.

 

 

In the Bundesliga, it was a great outing for Akpoguma and his Hoffenheim side as they secured an unprecedented clean sheet away at Bayer Leverkusen.

Going into the game, Hoffenheim had failed to keep a clean sheet in their previous two Bundesliga outings. However, with Akpoguma in the back three, it changed.

Goals from Christoph Baumgartner, Andrej Kramaric, and Georginio Rutter ensured a 3-0 win, but Akpoguma did his job in the backline. The Super Eagles recorded two interceptions, two tackles, and won all of his six duels.

 

Finally, it was a sore afternoon for Raphael Onyedika and his Midtjylland side, as they fell to a shocking defeat at home to Aarhus.

The former Danish champions had been in bad form, failing to win any of their last four, and a second-half capitulation took their winless run to five games.

Midtjylland controlled the game in the first half, bossing all the stats against Aarhus. But Yann Aurel Bisseck scored against the run of play to give Aarhus the lead in the 61st minute.

The Horses went searching for an equalizer, leaving their defense exposed. They were surely punished, as Mikael Anderson scored in the 86th minute to ensure a 2-0 victory for the away team.

Onyedika had a decent game in the middle of the park with a 78 percent pass accuracy, two successful dribbles, seven successful duels, and one interception.