The German Bundesliga returned for match day 23 fixtures on Saturday with several Nigerian players involved, Soccernet.ng reports.
It proved to be a memorable weekend for young midfielder Uchenna Ogundu, who enjoyed a dream start to life at FC Augsburg.
The 19-year-old recently joined Augsburg from Turkish side Alanyaspor during the January transfer window and has been settling into his new environment in Germany. His patience paid off when head coach Manuel Baum included him in the matchday squad for the difficult away trip to VfL Wolfsburg.
Ogundu began the game on the bench but was introduced in the 81st minute, replacing midfielder Robin Fellhauer. At that moment, Augsburg were trailing 2-1 after goals from Yannick Gerhardt and Kento Shiogai had put Wolfsburg ahead, despite Rodrigo Ribeiro keeping the visitors within reach.
His arrival coincided with a dramatic change in momentum. Augsburg pushed forward with renewed energy and were rewarded when Michael Gregoritsch converted a late penalty in the 87th minute to level the score. Deep into stoppage time, Elvis Rexhbecaj completed the comeback, scoring the winning goal to seal a thrilling 3-2 victory.
Although Ogundu did not score or assist, his debut will be remembered as part of an impressive turnaround, a positive first step in his Bundesliga career.
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Nigeria: Mixed fortunes for Tella, Collins and Akpoguma
While Ogundu celebrated success, other Nigerian players experienced a quieter weekend.
Super Eagles winger Nathan Tella missed Bayer Leverkusen’s trip to Union Berlin after suffering a knock. Without him, Leverkusen struggled to find attacking rhythm and lost 1-0, with Rani Khedira scoring the only goal midway through the first half.
Elsewhere, defender Nathan Collins, who has Nigerian heritage, featured for Eintracht Frankfurt in an entertaining but frustrating 3-2 defeat away to champions Bayern Munich. Frankfurt competed well but could not contain Bayern’s attacking quality.
Meanwhile, Super Eagles centre-back Kevin Akpoguma remained an unused substitute as TSG Hoffenheim shared the points in an exciting 2-2 draw with 1. FC Köln.
