“Iheanacho deserves respect from Sevilla director” – Olofinjana

Nigerian forward Kelechi Iheanacho has received the backing of ex-international Seyi Olofinjana following Sevilla sporting director Victor Orta’s harsh criticisms of the Owerri-born attacker.

The Spanish football director described Iheanacho’s signing as a “mistake” for the La Liga club after the Super Eagle struggled to find his feet at the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan Stadium. Iheanacho joined Sevilla in the summer of 2024 after the expiration of his contract with Leicester City but failed to make the desired impact.

He was loaned to Middlesbrough in January after a disappointing spell. Speaking earlier in the week, Orta admitted, “It is clear that betting on Kelechi this season has been a mistake, and we are now analyzing why we made it.”

Speaking on Brila FM, Olofinjana questioned the club’s handling of the situation.

“I don’t think it’s a Kelechi problem. The real question is whether the club did enough to help him settle and create an environment where he could succeed. If Kelechi is given the chance to speak, I’m sure he would have his own perspective on how things unfolded. You can’t simply come out with that kind of statement."

“There’s still a lot more to his game than we’ve seen. I believe he can bounce back and take his career to greater heights,” Olofinjana concluded.

Iheanacho, 28, has so far played eleven EFL Championship matches for Middlesbrough with one goal to his credit. He was a member of the Super Eagles initial 39-man squad but failed to make the final list of 23 that clawed four points from their two 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Rwanda and Zimbabwe in March.