Odion Ighalo on China move: “It was an opportunity to make money”

Former Nigeria national team striker Odion Ighalo has revealed that he left English club Watford for Chinese Super League side Changchun Yatai because of financial considerations.

The now 36-year-old admitted that he had achieved his much awaited dream of playing in the English Premier League, which came in 2014 when he joined Watford from Spanish outfit Granada.

The former Super Eagles attacker was an important factor in the Hornets’ promotion to the English top-flight after scoring 20 goals and providing three assists in 35 EFL Championship games.

Ighalo amassed 15 Premier League goals the following season which saw him earn a move to Changchun Yatai in a mouthwatering deal worth £20 million pounds at the time.

Speaking on the Echo Podcast, the 2019 AFCON Golden Boot winner revealed he went to China for the money since he had already tasted the English Premier League.

“I was 27 at the time. I’d fulfilled my personal dream of playing in the English Premier League. When I was growing up in Ajegunle, I didn’t even know I’d get to the level I got to.

“I just wanted to make a few bucks to change my family and make them proud, alongside a dream to play in the Premier League because I watched the league a lot. It’s the most viewed in the World.

“Back then, we used to pay to sit at the viewing centre, lapping each other to watch the television. The dream already came true for me, so when the offer from China came, I said it was an opportunity to make money, and I decided to grab it.”

“The club already accepted the offer without my consent because it was good money for them. They accepted £20m, because no team would pay that.

“I signed a four-year contract with Changchun Yatai, but I played two years there before moving to Shanghai Shenhua, with even more money because I did so well, scoring 36 goals in 53 or 54 games for the initial two years.

“I played one year at Shanghai before going on loan to Manchester United,” the Al-Wehda striker concluded.

Ighalo eventually made a return to the English Premier League in 2020 when Manchester United sought for his services in a loan move. He scored five goals in nineteen outings for the Red Devils. He previously played for Italy’s Udinese, China’s Shanghai Shenhua, Al Shabab and Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia before settling with Al Wehda.