Nigerians abroad: Penalty heartbreak for Nwakaeme, Ordega outstanding, Henty sees red

From Cyprus to Saudi Arabia, Nigerian stars were involved in competitive games for their clubs on Monday, 13 March 2023. Soccernet.ng highlights standout performances, red cards, penalty woes, and more.

In Cyprus, a dramatic ending unfolded as Ezekiel Henty came on as a late substitute but was sent off just four minutes later.

Despite the setback, Apollon managed to hold on to a narrow 1-0 win against AEK Larnaca, with Godswill Ekpolo leading the defensive line with an impressive performance.

Meanwhile, in Denmark, Stephen Odey continued his search for his first league goal of the season, but it was all in vain as Randers suffered a humbling 1-2 defeat at home to AGF.

In the Netherlands’ Eerste Divisie, Hamdi Akujobi featured for Almere City but could not prevent a crushing 1-3 home loss to VVV Venlo.

Moving on to the Portuguese Primeira Liga, Saviour Godwin impressed with a chance created, but Casa Pia fell to a narrow 1-0 away defeat at Famalicao. 

In Russia, Francisca Ordega kicked off the new Russian Superliga Women’s season in style, scoring a goal in CSKA Moskva’s convincing 3-0 victory away to Dinamo Moskva.

In Saudi Arabia, Anthony Nwakaeme was the standout player for Al-Fayha as they forced a 1-1 draw with Al Ittihad. However, in the ensuing penalty shootout, Nwakaeme missed his spot-kick, resulting in his side’s exit from the Saudi Kings Cup in the quarterfinals.

And in Turkey, Emeka Eze featured for Istanbulspor in their comfortable 3-0 victory over Leke James, Ahmed Musa (who played for just one minute), and Sivasspor.