You will be surprised at the number of talented Nigerian footballers who play in top-flight leagues abroad.
The Nigerian Super Eagles are renowned for having a large number of elite players who play for teams throughout Europe. Many of them play for foreign club teams and also get called up to play for their motherland.
Currently, several of these teams compete in some of Europe’s top leagues, including the illustrious English Premier League, the Bundesliga, Serie A, and La Liga (EPL).
Here are the top 20 Nigerian players abroad in no particular order.
Top 20 Nigerian footballers in Europe
Ogochukwu Frank Onyeka
Ogochukwu Frank Onyeka is a Nigerian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for the Premier League club Brentford, as well as the Nigeria national team.
Onyeka received his first call-up for the Nigeria national team in September 2020 against Algeria in a friendly match. He signed to Brentford on the 20th of July, 2021 for an undisclosed amount.
Check out this list of the best footballers in the world.
Alexander Chuka Iwobi
Alexander Chuka Iwobi, born on May 3 1996, is from Onitsha in Anambra State. Nicknamed Big 17, he plays as a forward for the Premier League club Everton and the Nigerian national team.
Iwobi signed for Arsenal while still at primary school at the tender age of eight. Jay Jay Okocha influenced his signature at the club. He transferred to Everton in 2019 for an initial £28 million fee, making him one of the top Nigerian footballers in Europe.
Kelechi Promise Iheanacho
Iheanacho began his senior career at Manchester City during the 2015–16 season. He moved to Leicester City in 2017 for a reported £25 million fee.
Iheanacho was also part of the Nigeria squad that won the 2013 FIFA U-17 World Cup and the Nigeria U-20 team at the 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup. He made his senior debut for Nigeria in 2015 and went on to play at the 2018 FIFA World Cup and 2021 Africa Cup of Nations.
SEE the Richest Footballers In The World
Wilfred Ndidi
Onyinye Wilfred Ndidi plays as a defensive midfielder for Premier League club Leicester City and the Nigeria national team. He transferred from Genk to Leicester City on a £17 million deal in 2016, and the deal was confirmed on 5 January 2017.
Ndidi made his debut for the club on 7 January 2017, in a 2–1 win against Everton in the third round of the FA Cup. He is known for his defensive prowess and is one of the top Nigerian footballers in Europe.
READ: Top 5 Countries with the Most Nigerians
Oghenekaro Peter Etebo
Oghenekaro Peter Etebo is one of those Nigerian miracle footballers who played his way into Europe and continued to maintain their class. He started out at Warri Wolves, where he spent three years, before moving into European football with Portuguese side Feirense.
On 15 September 2022, Etebo joined Greek’s Aris Thessaloniki on a season-long loan.
READ: Top 5 Most Expensive Cars in the World
Emmanuel Dennis
Emmanuel Bonaventure Dennis plays as a striker for the Premier League club Nottingham Forest and the Nigeria national team. He moved to Nottingham Forest from Watford on August 13, 2022 for an undisclosed fee.
William Paul Troost-Ekong
Born in the Netherlands into a mixed Dutch and Nigerian family, Troost-Ekong was eligible for both the Netherlands and Nigeria in international football. He signed for EFL Championship side Watford on a five-year contract deal in 2020.
On 24 January 2023, Troost-Ekong moved to Serie A club Salernitana on a loan. The move comes with the option to buy at the end of the season.
Samuel Chimerenka Chukwueze
Samuel Chimerenka Chukwueze plays as a winger for La Liga club Villarreal and the Nigeria national team. He won the Nigeria Football Federation’s 2018 Young Player of the Year award in April 2019 and is highly rated as one of the top Nigerian footballers in Europe.
Kenneth Josiah Omeruo
Omeruo plays as a defender for Segunda División club Leganés and the Nigeria national team. He signed for Chelsea from Standard Liège in January 2012 and from there, went on loan to Dutch top-flight side ADO Den Haag.
Umar Sadiq Mesbah
Umar Sadiq Mesbah is a forward for the La Liga club Real Sociedad and the Nigeria national team. He signed a contract with the Spanish side on 1 September 2022 that will last until the end of the 2027–28 season.
He scored the first goal on his debut in a 1–1 home draw against Atlético Madrid only 2 days after.
SEE: Nigerians Dominating the MMA
Victor James Osimhen
Osimhen should probably have come first, as he is the highest rated Nigerian footballer in Europe. The 23-year-old plays as a striker for Italian Serie A side Napoli at the club level and the Super Eagles of Nigeria at the international level.
He is known for his pace, work rate, and aerial abilities.
Isaac Success Ajayi
Isaac Success Ajayi plays as a forward for Serie A club Udinese. He first signed for Watford in 2016 for a five-year deal estimated at a £12.5 million record transfer fee from Granada.
He moved to Udinese in August 2021 on a three year deal.
Ebere Paul Onuachu
Ebere Paul Onuachu is a Nigerian professional footballer who plays for the English Premier League club Southampton and the Nigeria national team, as a forward.
He moved to Danish club FC Midtjylland on a scholarship in 2012 from their affiliate team Ebedei in Nigeria. He signed a new three-year contract with the club in 2013, which he extended to a further three years in 2015.
Onuachu moved to Belgian side Genk in August 2019. On 1 February 2023, he signed a three-and-a-half-year contract with Premier League club Southampton.
Chidozie Collins Awaziem
Chidozie Collins Awaziem plays as a central defender for Croatian outfit Hajduk Split on loan from Boavista. He started his career in Porto in 2014, where he spent the majority of his career.
On 1 August 2022, Awaziem moved on loan to HNK Hajduk Split with an option to make the move permanent at the end of the season.
Maduka Emilio Okoye
The Watford goalkeeper made his professional debut in the Regionalliga West for Fortuna Düsseldorf II in a game against Wuppertaler SV in October 2017. He wasted no time pinning a starting role in the 2018/2019 season.
In July 2020, Okoye moved to Eredivisie side Sparta Rotterdam and kept 10 clean sheets in 28 league games during the 2020/21 season. He won Sparta’s Player of the Season award.
Okoye signed a five-and-a-half-year deal with Watford in November 2021. However, he was loaned back in January to Sparta until the end of the 2021–22 campaign.
Moses Daddy-Ajala Simon
Simon started his career playing for AS Trenčín in 2014. He signed a three-year contract with Gent in 2015 and joined Spanish La Liga side Levante in 2018.
On 15 August 2019, Simon moved to Ligue 1 club Nantes on loan. At the end of the season, Nantes triggered the option to buy in Simon’s loan and he signed a four-year contract with the club.
Samuel Kalu
Another talented Super Eagles player endowed with pace and dribbling abilities is none other than the prolific Samuel Kalu.
Kalu started his football career at GBS Academy in Jos, Nigeria. On 9 December 2015, he agreed to a two-year contract with Slovak side AS Trenčín. He then moved to Belgium’s top division club KAA Gent In 2017.
He moved to Ligue 1 side Bordeaux in 2018. On 26 January 2022, Kalu joined Premier League club Watford on a three-and-a-half-year deal until 2025.
Joshua Erowoli Orisunmihare Oluwaseun Maja
The Super Eagles star Popularly known as Josh Maja is a center forward who plays for the Ligue 1 side Bordeaux.
Maja played on loan for the English team Fulham in the 2021/2022 season. He joined Stoke City on loan for the remainder of the season.
READ: Talent VS Hard Work: Which Always Wins?
Jamilu Collins
Jamilu Collins plays as a left-back for Cardiff City. Prior to signing for the Welsh side on 20 May 2022, Collins played for Rijeka and other clubs on loans between 2012 to 2017.
Temitayo Olufisayo Olaoluwa Aina
Temitayo Olufisayo Olaoluwa Aina plays as a wing-back for Serie A club Torino, and the Nigeria national team.
Ola Aina signed for Chelsea as an under-11 and made his youth team debut as a schoolboy in the 2012–13 season. He went on to start in both legs of the semi-final and final of the FA Youth Cup.
On 11 September 2020, Aina signed for Fulham on an initial season-long loan with an option to make the deal permanent.
