League Two side Bradford City have announced Hope Akpan and nine other players have not been offered new contracts.
The 28-year-old midfielder joined the Valley Parade outfit in the summer of 2018 and made 47 league appearances for the club.
Last season, he captained the Bantams and played 28 times but his efforts were not enough to prevent Stuart McCall’s men from being relegated to the English fourth tier.
In the current campaign, he has made 23 appearances across all competitions for the Valley Parade outfit and scored four goals to help Bradford to their present ninth spot on the league table.
Bradford has, however, revealed the midfielder, along with Kelvin Mellor, Jake Reeves, Shay McCartan, Jordan Gibson, Jermaine Anderson, Adam Henley, Daniel Devine, Joe Riley and George Sykes-Kenworthy, whose contracts expire in June, will not be offered new deals, according to a statement on the club website.
Next Match
Akpan started his career at Everton when he joined the Goodison Park outfit academy at the age of eight and after convincing showings in the youth team, he was handed his first professional contract in 2008.
The midfielder did not play for the senior team, given the competition for places at the Toffees and his desire to enjoy regular playing time saw him move to Hull City on loan, but was also a peripheral figure at the Tigers where he played only two games.
The Super Eagles player then left for Crawley Town permanently in 2011 and went on to spend two years with the side, featuring in 47 league games.
His impressive performances at Crawley saw him join Premier League club Reading in January 2013 but he only played nine times for the side, as they were relegated from the English top-flight.
In July 2015, Akpan’s contract was terminated and he joined Blackburn Rovers the following month, where he featured in 60 games before teaming up with Bradford in 2018.
Akpan was born in England to Nigerian parents and declared his intention to represent the Super Eagles in 2013.
The midfielder made his international debut for Nigeria in October 2014 and went on to make four appearances for the West Africans.
Akpan last featured for the three-time African champions in 2015 against South Africa in a friendly.
