“I want to go” – Nigeria’s most valuable youngster makes come-get-me plea to Man United, Chelsea, Lille, others

The exciting young forward knows a thing or two about scoring goals, and he is desperate to show off that ability on a grander scale

KAA Gent ace Gift Orban has decided to leave Belgium during this summer’s transfer window, Soccernet.ng reports.

Since making the switch from Norway to Belgium, Orban has been on fire, impressing fans with his incredible goal-scoring abilities in both the domestic league and the Europa Conference League. 

Despite attracting interest from some of Europe’s biggest clubs, Orban has remained at Genk due to the lack of concrete offers.

This is in contrast to his good friend Victor Boniface, who successfully moved from another Belgian club, Union Saint-Gilloise, to Bayer Leverkusen in the German Bundesliga.

However, Orban is eager to take his game to a higher level and leave the Belgian Jupiler Pro League behind.

Several clubs have shown interest in the talented attacker, with Manchester United, Chelsea, and Tottenham reportedly keeping tabs on the youngster back in May.

At the moment, though, Ligue 1 campaigners Lille seem to be at the forefront of the race for Orban’s signature. And the youngster is convinced the time to leave Belgium is now. 

“No, I’m not talking to my manager; he’s doing his job. I love Belgium, but I want to go to a bigger league,” Orban said, as per HLN.

“There, I can gain more experience and improve.”

A few players have moved from Gent to Lille in recent times, including Canadian forward Jonathan David.

And many are looking at the possibility of Orban following a similar path. But the 20-year-old is focused more on writing his own tale.

He said, “That ex-players have already gone from Gent to Lille? That’s what they tell me, yes, but I don’t look at other players. I just do my job.”

Orban has already made a flying start to the new season.

In Gent’s first competitive match of the campaign, Orban showcased his brilliance by scoring in a convincing 5-1 victory over MSK Zilina during the first leg of their Europa Conference League qualifiers.

Worth noting is that Orban is Nigeria’s most valuable player under the age of 23, with a market value of €20 million.