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Tag: Samuel Kalu

  • Why I gave Samuel Kalu his debut in Super Eagles-Gernot Rohr

    Former head coach of the Super Eagles,  Franco German , Gernot Rohr has named Bordeaux forward Samuel Kalu, as one of the best dribblers in Europe.

    Rohr made this revelation why explaining why Kalu has not been invited lately to the Super Eagles team.

    Kalu joined Girondins Bordeaux from Belgian side KAA Gent in August 2018 and made his national team debut the following month.

    Rohr confessed he gave Kalu his Super Eagles debut because Bordeaux asked for it to enable them to facilitate the approval of the young playmaker’s contract with the league authorities.

    Kalu earned all 17 international caps under Rohr, scoring two goals.

    Kalu has also been out of favour at the club level, managing just 11 appearances for Bordeaux before switching to Watford in January where he has featured in only four matches before they were relegated to the Championship.

    Rohr believes Kalu’s decline is because he played for coaches who did not show enough confidence in the player’s ability.

    “But Samuel Kalu was an excellent dribbler, one of the best dribblers in Europe. He had impressive dribbling stats. I think that, unfortunately, they didn’t know…,” Rohr told AquiTélé as per Girondins4ever.

    “There were also a lot of coaches. Kalu had still played quite a bit with Paulo Sousa at one point; then, I saw some good matches with Jean-Louis Gasset.

    “Then there was no longer that confidence, he needed to make a difference. He’s a sensitive player,” he added.

  • Transfer: Super Eagles forward joins Watford

    Transfer: Super Eagles forward joins Watford

    Super Eagles forward, Samuel Kalu has completed a move from French Ligue1 side, Bordeaux to Premier League club, Watford.

    The relegation-battling side announced the deal until June 2025.

    Kalu becomes the fourth signing of the January window and the fourth Super Eagles star plying his trade at Vicarage Road.

    Watford have brought in Hassane Kamara, Samir and midfielder Edo Kayembe this January and already have Nigerian stars Ogenekoro Etebo, William Troost-Ekong and Emmanuel Dennis on their payroll.

    “The 24-year-old signs for the Hornets following three-and-a-half successful years in France’s top tier, where he scored nine goals,” a statement on the club’s official website reads.

    “Capable of playing on either flank, Kalu is a versatile option in a competitive squad, typically operating on the right-wing.”

  • Super Eagles Star returns to Bordeaux training after collapse

    Super Eagles Star returns to Bordeaux training after collapse

    Samuel Kalu returned to training on Wednesday after collapsing on the pitch in Sunday’s Ligue 1 clash against Marseille which ended 2-2.

    Kalu, 23, fell to the ground in the sixth minute as Marseille’s Dimitri Payet prepared to take a free-kick amid searing temperatures at the Stade Velodrome.

    Players from both teams rushed to the Nigeria international and called for medical attention.

    He was able to get up and walk off the pitch with the help of his team-mates, holding an ice pack against his head.

    He resumed playing after getting treatment but was substituted after he appeared dazed.
    The club took to the social media to announce his return to training.

    “Samuel Kalu is back in training,” reads a tweet on Bordeaux’s handle.

  • Super Eagles’ star doing fine after collapsing during club match

    Super Eagles’ star doing fine after collapsing during club match

    Bordeaux and Super Eagles striker Samuel Kalu who collapsed on the pitch on Sunday has been doing fine, club teammate Remy Oudin said on Monday.

    Kalu went down during the French clubside’s 2-2 draw against hosts Marseille in a 2021/2022 French Ligue 1 fixture at the Stade Velodrome.

    The 23-year-old received immediate medical attention after falling to the ground in the sixth minute, with players from both teams forming a wall around him as he was being attended to.

    He then walked off the pitch minutes later holding an ice pack against his head.

    Kalu resumed playing after getting treatment but was substituted for Oudin in the 14th minute after he appeared dazed.

    “It gave us a bit of a chill and it’s still quite shocking,” Oudin, who scored Bordeaux’s equaliser as they fought back from two goals down to earn a draw, said.

    Recalled that Kalu also collapsed from severe dehydration during a Super Eagles’ training session at the 2019 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Egypt.

    Oudin had told reporters on Sunday that the doctor had said it was just a dizzy spell.

    But on Monday, he said: “We’re happy for Kalu, everything is fine and that’s the most important thing.”

    The player added that the incident did bring scary moments to him and his teammates. “We inevitably thought about what happened with Eriksen. The whole team and everyone was scared.”

    Former Tottenham playmaker and Denmark midfielder Christian Eriksen collapsed in June when he suffered a cardiac arrest in the first half of their Euro 2020 match against Finland.

  • Another Super Eagles player tests positive for COVID-19

    Another Super Eagles player tests positive for COVID-19

    News coming out of France reports that Super Eagles forward Samuel Kalu has become a coronavirus patient after testing positive.

    While Kalu’s club Bordeaux made the announcement on Tuesday without revealing his name, Nigerian publication Brila believes it is the 22-year-old Abia-born footballer.

    “Bordeaux forward, Samuel Kalu, has been tested positive for COVID-19, becoming the second Super Eagles star to contract the disease after Genk striker, Paul Onuachu,” the outlet wrote.

    “Kalu has been in quarantine in France since returning from holidays in Nigeria, and a report from AFP confirmed that Kalu was the player announced by the club to have contracted COVID-19 on July 6,” added the report.

    This is coming after Super Eagles player and Genk striker, Paul Onuachu recovered from the disease.

  • Kalu on target for Bordeaux in 1-3 loss to Galatasaray

    Super Eagles winger Samuel Kalu scored in his first pre-season game for French club Girondis Bordeaux who lost 1-3 to Turkish champions Galatasaray on Sunday.
    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Kalu started on the bench and took the place of Frenchman Jimmy Briand in the 73rd minute of the encounter.
    He scored Bordeaux’s only goal of the match played at Tuvalu Stadion Tirol in Innsbruck a minute after his introduction following a pass from Raoul Bellanova.
    Ryan Babel, Atalay Babacan and Adem Buyuk all got the goals for Galatasaray.
    Former Flying Eagles defender Valentine Ozornwafor featured for Galatasaray in the game.
    Ozornwafor took the place of Babel in the 88th minute, his second pre-season appearance for the club.