AS Monaco announce the signing of Onyekuru

Credits: AS Monaco Twitter

Nigerian international Henry Onyekuru signed with Ligue 1 table club AS Monaco. The athlete arrives from Everton, in exchange of €12M, with a contract valid for the next five seasons.

Onyekuru started playing in the Aspire Academy, located in Qatar, graduating in 2015. Then he had his first adventure in Europe, moving to Belgium to play in Eupen, in the Second Division.

In 2016-17, already after Eupen had been promoted, he finished as joint top scorer of the Jupiler League, with 22 goals. Thus, his goal prowess attracted many clubs around Europe and Everton came calling, paying £7 million for the youngster.

However, due to problems with his work permit in England, Onyekuru was loaned to Anderlecht, in Belgium again. He scored 10 goals in 28 matches with the Purple & White team from Brussels but suffered a knee ligament injury that required surgery.

He never recovered his form again in the club and in the next season he was offloaded again, this time to Turkish team, where he played in Galatasaray. He had a decent campaign, with 44 appearances, 16 goals, and 6 assists, as the team swept another league title and a Turkish cup.

Now, since Everton has no space for the youngster and he still was struggling with his work permit, Monaco took a gamble into the Super Eagles star.

Onyekuru is also a Nigeria international, with 11 caps for the African side, but only one goal, which came in a qualification match of AFCON against Seychelles.

4 signings but still no Ligue 1 wins

Monaco is trying to rebuild a team that last year avoided relegation for merely 2 points. Since they are still unsure whether their most prolific goal scorer Radamel Falcao is staying or moving abroad, Leonardo Jardim sought for a fresher option upfront.

Besides Onyekuru, the team secured the signing of Gelson Martins, from Atletico Madrid, on a value of €30M and a duo from Montpellier: goalkeeper Benjamin Lecomte and the right-back Ruben Aguilar.

So far, they entered with the left foot in the league, losing 0-3 at home to Lyon in the opening match of the Ligue 1 schedule.

About Jorge Costa 140 Articles
Jorge Costa is a freelance journalist, with a Masters Degree in Journalism and Communication, through the University of Coimbra, Portugal. He specializes in sports and soccer in particular.

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