Super Eagles striker, Sadiq Umar, has revealed why he ditched Real Sociedad to join Valencia on loan, Soccernet.ng reports.
The 27-year-old forward has struggled to nail down a starting berth in San Sebastian since joining the club in 2022, scoring just four goals across 50 games.
In a bid to find playing time, the former Rangers man joined another La Liga side, Valencia, on a six-month loan deal, with an option to buy included. Should Los Ches decide to sign the 192cm tall forward, they’ll pay nine million euros to Real Sociedad.
After he was unveiled by Carlos Corberan’s side, Sadiq revealed the reason he quit Sociedad was due to his lack of playing time.
“All footballers need consistency [regular football], and unfortunately, I didn’t get the continuity I wanted at Real Sociedad. I understand, though—sometimes players make decisions that don’t go as planned, and that’s just part of the game. It didn’t work out for me there, but that doesn’t mean it was a bad experience. I keep moving forward and hope things go well for me here at Valencia. I wish Real Sociedad all the best,” the Super Eagles striker said in his opening club presser.
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COMUNICADO OFICIAL | SADIQ UMAR#BenvingutSadiq#ADNVCF
— Valencia CF (@valenciacf) January 4, 2025
Sadiq has been well-travelled across Europe, but hit his big break in Almeria where he scored 43 goals and provided 19 assists in 84 games. Since then, he’s struggled to hit the same heights again but is hopeful a move to Valencia will be a breath of fresh air.