There are a number of bright young stars within Nigerian football who are looking to make their name on a bigger stage.
Those players are aiming to emulate the likes of Victor Osimhen and Moses Simon who joined Napoli and Nantes respectively last summer and are already impressing at their new employers.
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One young talent, who is widely tipped to break through in the next few months, is Paul Mukairu.
Currently on loan at Anderlecht from Antalyaspor, the 21-year-old needs to improve his scoring ratio but he’s already attracted the attention of clubs in England.
Spurs in Contention
According to reports, Tottenham Hotspur are the club most likely to bid for Paul Maikuru’s services at the end of the English season.
Multiple trophy winner Jose Mourinho is now in charge of the north London club and he sees the young Nigerian striker as part of his plans.
Having taken over at Spurs in November 2019, Mourinho has put Tottenham on course to win their first piece of major silverware in 13 years.
The club are heading towards the last eight of the Europa League while they have reached the final of the EFL Cup.
Standing in the way of their aims are Manchester City who Spurs will face in that final at the end of April. Nigerian sports betting companies linked in to sbo.net list City as the hot favourites to win that game and their recent form in the EPL suggests that view is justified.
Anyone looking to back Spurs in that match may wish to look at offers and promotions as opposed to staking their own money. Sbo.net have links to those too while there will be news and opinion articles to help readers make an informed decision.
Even if Tottenham miss out on a trophy this season, the future looks bright and they seem especially keen on adding the youngster Mukairu to their roster.
Potential
As his observers will admit, Paul Mukairu is far from the finished article as a player.
As a winger, his main task isn’t to score goals but his scoring returns will certainly need some improvement if he does switch clubs. With his parent club, Antalyaspor, Mukairu scored three goals in his first 27 matches.
While at Anderlecht during his loan spell, the player has maintained that ratio with two goals in 20 games. Providing assists would be his main aim but prospective buyers would like to see those levels improve.
However, those reports state that Jose Mourinho has seen the potential in Paul Mukairu and he is anxious to add him to the ranks at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
At a fee believed to be in the region of £5 million GBP, he could be a relative bargain in today’s markets.
Options
If Mukairu does look to leave Turkey, he’s unlikely to be short of options.
The winger has become a regular in the Anderlecht team and many fans would be happy to see the Belgian club sign the Nigerian on a permanent basis.
Elsewhere, a representative of the player revealed that Ajax have also shown interest in signing the winger at the end of their domestic season.
Transfer news involving Paul Mukairu is gaining momentum and the Dutch giants feel that the Nigerian has the technical ability that would suit their style of play.
Bayer Leverkusen and Roma have also been mentioned in connection with a possible transfer. It’s going to be an interesting close season for the 21-year-old but which destination should he choose?
Development
Of the clubs previously mentioned, Ajax may appear to be a logical choice.
The club are widely known for their development of young players and they have a history of taking raw talent and turning it into world-class ability.
With Tottenham, there is more of a possibility that the player will be sent out on loan once again.
There is a parallel here following Spurs’ signing of Ryan Sessegnon in 2019.
Unable to break into the first team, the former Fulham man made a loan switch to Hoffenheim in 2020 and he faces an uncertain future.
Mukairu will certainly have options but he will have to choose wisely when Europe’s big clubs come calling.
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