Real Sociedad exploring Asian option for Sadiq Umar as Super Eagles star rejoins group training

Sadiq Umar was expected to leave Real Sociedad during the summer transfer window, but the club refused to sell…

Super Eagles striker Sadiq Umar trained with his Real Sociedad teammates for the first time this season on Tuesday, but there is still a chance that he could move to Asia in the coming weeks, Soccernet.ng reports.

Over the last few months, Sadiq has been linked with numerous clubs, with Real Sociedad looking to sell him as they see him as a dispensable player.

The 28-year-old striker joined Txuri-Urdin in 2022 after three impressive years at Almeria. At the time, he was one of the best striker in Spain, so it was not a surprise that they broke their transfer record and paid €20 million for his services.

Unfortunately, things fell apart pretty quickly, as he sustained an anterior cruciate ligament injury in just his second game from the club. That effectively ruled him out of the season.

By the time Sadiq returned to action in the 2023/24 season, Real Sociedad had already signed new attackers. So he had to play more from the bench, as he failed to perform with the few opportunities he got.

Then, last season, after a tough first half of the campaign that saw him feature in just seven La Liga games, he joined Valencia in a six-month loan deal.

At Valencia, he was impressive, contributing six goals in 19 appearances. There was an option-to-buy clause in his contract, but the club refused to activate the conditions.

They returned for Sadiq towards the end of the transfer window, but they wanted another loan deal, which Real Sociedad refused.

The Super Eagles star was also linked to several other clubs in Spain and Turkey. But nothing concrete emerged before the transfer window closed.

Amid all the transfer talks, Sadiq has been training alone, away from the rest of the rest of the Real Sociedad team. But now, Estadio Deportivo reports that he has started working with his teammates and will be selected for games.

Real Sociedad Still Open To Selling Sadiq Umar

Now that the transfer windows in the top European Leagues have closed, Real Sociedad are willing to integrate Sadiq Umar into their plans. However, they are still open to offloading him.

One of the places they are really looking at is the United Arab Emirates. The transfer window there is open until October 2.

No club has shown strong interest in signing Sadiq yet, but it could be an enticing option for him, especially if the pay is right.

Moreover, he knows that he will not get a lot of game time at Real Sociedad, so he might just be willing to leave.

But in the meantime, he will be looking to get game time and make an impact at Real Sociedad.