Umar Sadiq unveiled at Valencia - Photo Courtesy Valencia Media.
Nigeria forward Umar Sadiq has discussed his move to Valencia from Real Sociedad through to the end of the season. The loan move comes with an option to buy for Valencia with reports estimating that the La Liga club can make the transfer permanent for €9 million.
According to the player, he lacked game time at Real Sociedad and hopes things take a different turn this year. The 27-year-old has been limited to 11 appearances in all competitions with only one assist to show. Sadiq's last La Liga start came in a 2-0 home defeat to Real Madrid on September 14.
“All footballers need continuity [regular football], and it's something I didn’t get. I understand there are other players, and the coach makes decisions that I respect. I hope things work out for me here,” Sadiq told Valencia’s official website after completing the loan move.
“When I started talking to Miguel Angel Corona, I realised that there was a lot in common between Valencia and me because I have a lot of hunger. I have also seen that due to the situation of the club there is also a lot of hunger here and I saw this coinciding in motivation that made me choose to come here.”
Sadiq further revealed that Valencia only contacted him for three weeks. “They have been in contact with me for about three weeks now. Valencia CF are one of the biggest clubs in Spain and we are both in the same situation of hunger and growth,” he explained.
The Super Eagle continued: “It is true that Valencia’s position at the moment is not where they normally are. Valencia are hungry, as was shown yesterday against Real Madrid, but we were unlucky.”
On coach Corberan, he said: “I have spoken to him and he has explained what they need from me. They need us all to fight. That is the mission: To fight for Valencia. The most important thing is to focus on the work by the team.”
On whether he had recovered from the knee injury he sustained while at Sociedad, Sadiq said: “I suffered a serious knee injury. I was at my best before, but now I feel 100% physically, what I need is regular football. As a striker, what I want is to score goals and get the best results possible.”
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