- Ndah signed for Pirates at the start of last season
- But there is already overseas interest in him
- His agent explains why a January move to Serie A failed
WHAT HAPPENED? The 25-year-old centre-back was a target of Sassuolo during the January player transfer window but the move did not materialise. Makaab says the Serie A side was keen on the dreadlocked defender but the player was injured.
It is an injury that saw him miss Nigeria’s November 2022 international friendly matches against Costa Rica and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal who were preparing for the Fifa World Cup. He had been called up by Super Eagles coach Jose Peseiro.
But after taking too long to regain full fitness, Sassuolo could not sign the defender who arrived at Pirates at the beginning of last season.
WHAT MAKAAB SAID: “There was an early interest in Olisa Ndah,” Makaab told FARPost. “He sustained an injury at the same time as the interest that came from Italy,”
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Being a Nigeria international has kept Ndah’s profile high. That has also seen Pirates being applauded for being spot-on in signing a player of his stature. Having now fully recovered from injury, it is to be seen if he will be included in the Nigeria squad for the upcoming internationals.
Next Match
Ndah returned to action last week in the Soweto Derby against Kaizer Chiefs. But it turned out to be a horrible outing for him after he beat his own goalkeeper Sipho Chaine for an own goal that separated the Soweto giants.
His own goal made him a subject of mockery on social media but he will be hoping to bounce back from that setback.
WHAT NEXT FOR NDAH? The Nigeria international is now back to full fitness and will want to reclaim his starting place at the heart of the Pirates defence and earn a call up for the Super Eagles Afcon Qualifier squad.
Top performances could see Sassuolo come back for him in the next player transfer window or he might attract the interest of another overseas club.
