Valencia CF coach, Carlos Corberan, has confirmed that Sadiq Umar is ready to compete for the club after completing his loan move last Friday, La Palabras reports.
Corberan shared this information during an interview ahead of Valencia’s Copa del Rey match against CD Eldense, scheduled for Wednesday at the Nuevo Pepico Amat.
While Valencia faces CD Eldense in the Copa del Rey, it is unclear whether Umar will play, given that he had already participated in the competition with Real Sociedad before his move to Los Che.
Umar joined Valencia on a six-month loan from Real Sociedad, with an option for a permanent transfer valued at €10m.
Ahead of the game, Corberan expressed his confidence in Umar, stating that he is “ready to compete,” the coach said.
“He is a player who has come in with the attitude that any player has to come to Valencia Club de Fútbol with, and that is the mentality of helping out.
“All the new players that might join are more than welcome and they must come with that self-demand and awareness of the responsibility that we have, aware that we are going to demand the maximum from them – because that is the commitment that we have to our club.
“He is ready to compete, and if necessary, he will be able to help the team.”
Umar’s professional career began in 2014 when he signed for Spezia’s youth team from Abuja College in Nigeria.
After a standout season with the U-19 team, scoring 25 goals in 28 appearances, he moved up to the first team, where he played six matches and scored two goals.
He later played for Bologna (2016-17), Torino (2017-18), and Perugia (2018-19) on loan, as well as in other leagues with NAC Breda (2017-18), Rangers FC (2018-19), and Partizán Belgrade (2019-2021), where he netted 23 goals and provided four assists in 52 appearances.
Umar’s Spanish adventure began with UD Almería in 2020. Over three seasons, he scored 43 goals and provided 13 assists in 84 games, contributing to the team’s promotion to La Liga.
On September 1, 2022, he moved to Real Sociedad, but after only three appearances, a serious knee injury sidelined him for the remainder of the season.
He made 36 appearances in the following season, scoring three goals. This season, Umar featured in 11 games for Real Sociedad, including seven in La Liga, three in the UEFA Europa League, and one in the Copa del Rey.
