As many as 25,000 fans went wild for former Nigerian youth international, Umar Sadiq on Wednesday when the striker produced a silky assist for his club, Partizan Belgrade.
A capacity crowd was permitted for the first time since March as the bitter city rivals, Partizan and Red Star Belgrade contested the Serbian cup semi-finals.
Sadiq must feel like another long-forgotten memory for Rangers fans but he’s popped up in a viral clip that reminds us what the game is all about and hopefully will be again before long.
The big striker endured a torrid time at Ibrox on-loan from Roma in 2018/19 and has since moved on to Partizan.
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He was involved in some spectacular scenes during Wednesday’s Belgrade derby against Red Star in front of a capacity 25,000 crowd.
The Nigerian’s mazy run, putting a rival on his backside, provided the assist for Bibras Natcho to send Partizan into the Serbian Cup Final.
It’s the first time a full crowd has been permitted inside stadiums since the coronavirus pandemic forced the Balkan nation to suspend football in March.
New Covid-19 cases in Serbia have reduced substantially over the past few months, remaining in double digits since May 23.
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COMMENTS
Never for once doubted Sadiq’s talent. Just another headache for Rohr. God bless SE,God bless Rohr n God mightily bless NIGERIA. Washeree Omo.
These are the highlights of the match
https://youtu.be/RrXs9uTrNrU
A terrific talent and definitely another good headache for the gaffer. He did really well at the last Olympics for Nigeria, but his unstable club career over the last couple seasons stalled his progress a bit. No doubt the talent has always been there. He only need to more consistent and he will be in the SuperEagles soon. Another #FLY LIKE AN EAGLE INTO THE FUTURE.
Good one for Sodiq. Lets not forget the experienced Anthony Nwakaeme who has contributed 25 goals (14 goals and 11 assists ) for his table toping club in Turkey. The pool is geting wider by the day any coach I think should do well with the number of good players available for selection in the super eagles. The super eagles is becoming the Barca of Guardeola days
Still wondering why they haven’t called you yet. Your touches alone at the olympics was so great. Well we r still waiting for the day they send you invite
Steven Gerrard how market?
Unfortunately for Sadiq Umar, nowadays, scoring goals in Serbia to try to attract the attention of national team handlers is just like winking at a girl in the dark.
This current Super Eagles management team are looking towards more glamorous leagues for Super Eagles strikers. The like of Umar and Junior Ajayi would be expected to make the Super Eagles squads under a different dispensation but these are different times.
Even Serbia look to English and Italian leagues (for example) for the nucleus of their national team composition.
I am very happy for Sadiq Umar. He is doing well for himself in Serbia. I hope he can seal a move to a more glamorous league where his exploits will attract impactful visibility.
But he was quite unlucky with Rohr. This is because when Rohr was appointed he started picking his players from the Olympics. And Sadiq was the highest goal scorer with Nigeria that won bronze and joint 3rd with Neymar and Etebo. The likes of Shehu, Etebo, Ndidi and Ekong graduated straight to the National team while he was excluded and then he was playing for Roma. So i guess maybe Rohr was not so impressed. But I felt then he deserved a look in.
But with Rohr if he continues this form, both in Europa league or gets a better club, his opportunity will come. And with his height he wiill be a better option than Onuachu who was kept in the team to give aerial options up front.
A great talent indeed.
I remembered four years ago when this dude and his childhood friend Abdullah nura burst into the first team of AS Roma, every weekend was filled with joy and expectation for me. Especially after his first goal against A.C. Milan which to me remain his best game in his professional career. As a lover of Italian football, I know umar is undoubtedly talented but he needs a good club where the coach will guarantees him a playing time and prayer to have an injury free career.
4 years is indeed a very long time in football. Within 4 years iheanacho has gone from being Mancity Wonder kid to leicester city’s disposable. Within 4 years, Ighalo has gone from being a Watford player to china and miraculously and unbelievably a Manchester United player.
Within 4 years Sadiq Umar has gone from scoring 4 goals in the olympics to playing on loan in 6 different clubs. Umar’s career simply went down south immediately after the olympics at a time others were on the ascendancy. Asking Rohr to call him up then would have been like asking Imoh Ezekiel to be called up ahead of Chukuweze and Ejuke now simply because he had a great 2016 olympics. Even as at last season Sadiq only managed 3 goals the whole season and 8 goals in total since after 2016 olympics. Tell me we didnt have strikers in europe who werent scoring more goals. So for those asking why he wasnt called up, ask yourselves if it would have been justified to call him up ahead of Ighalo, Osimhen, Onuachu or even Simy Nwankwo. even Ideye was in a good vein of form at Olympiakos as at that time.
The SE has been evolving over the past few years. Only strikers who can maintain consistency both for their clubs and the national team can find a place in the SE. Even Iheanacho that used to be No 1 on the list when Rohr was employed got dropped eventually when he couldn’t measure up anymore with his outright omittion from the AFCON in 2019 being the height of it all. Nowadays, its elimination by substitution. Even Ahmed Musa knows his place in the SE in no longer guaranteed by virtue of his being a captain, that’s why he has been exploring avenues to leave Saudi Arabia.
If Umar can maintain his consistency, even if it is in the Serbian league, performing the way he has been performing this season, or even better, I’m confident he will become a SE regular in a not too distant future,