Etiosa Ighodaro joins Kaizer Chiefs – Can he be the striker they’ve been waiting for?
Another striker Soweto giants Kaizer Chiefs have secured the services of striker Etiosa Ighodaro from Mamelodi Sundowns. Ighodaro spent last season on loan at AmaZulu. Photo: Sydney Mahlangu/BackpagePix
Image: Sydney Mahlangu/BackpagePix
Soweto giants Kaizer Chiefs have completed the deal to bring Mamelodi Sundowns’ Nigerian striker Etiosa Ighodaro to Naturena.
Amakhosi announced on their social media channels on Tuesday that Ighodaro joins their ranks in a bid to address their woes in front of goal that have plagued them for the last two Betway Premiership seasons.
Ighodaro joins from Sundowns, but since joining the Brazilians at just 20 years old in 2021, he never kicked a ball for them in an official game. Immediately after arriving in South Africa from Abuja College, he was sent on loan to the University of Pretoria. In 2022, he moved – on loan again – to Chippa United in the Eastern Cape.
In 2023, SuperSport United called on his services before AmaZulu secured him the following season.
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During his career in South African football, his best goal return in the league was 11 goals in 27 games for Chippa United. Last season, he found the back of the net six times for AmaZulu. In the last four years, he’s scored 25 goals in all competitions.
That mixed record tells the story of a striker still finding consistency, but one who has shown enough to hint at his potential.
While he needs to improve on his goal input, there are some positives to Ighodaro’s game, and Nasreddine Nabi will be hoping to get the most out of them. With his physical frame, Ighodaro is built like a traditional number 9, possessing the physicality to hold the ball up effectively and shield it under pressure.
This allows him to occupy defenders and create opportunities – he combines this with the awareness of a modern striker. He’s also been credited with intelligent off-the-ball movement and his ability to read the game.
At just 24 years old, Ighodaro still has a lot of room for improvement. Whether he can become the prolific goalscorer Chiefs are desperate for remains to be seen.
For Chiefs, the signing represents both a gamble and an opportunity. Ighodaro has shown flashes of promise without yet proving himself as a consistent match-winner, but Naturena could be the stage where he finally delivers on his potential.
If Nabi can harness his strengths and unlock his finishing touch, Ighodaro may well become the striker to fire Amakhosi back to the summit of South African football.
IOL Sport