Odion Ighalo and 3 other Nigerian free agents who failed to move this summer

The summer 2026 transfer window slammed shut across Europe’s major leagues yesterday, and while Nigerian names like Femi Azeez, Zadok Yohanna and Terem Moffi secured moves, a handful of Super Eagles players remain in a different position, Afrik-Foot reports.

For four established Nigerian internationals, the window closed exactly as it opened, leaving them without a club.

Between them, they have accumulated more than 100 Super Eagles caps, played in five different continents’ top-flight leagues, and were once considered among the most bankable Nigerian exports of their respective generations.

Four Nigerian free agents still without a club

1. Odion Ighalo

The most experienced name on the list is also the one who has been without a club the longest.

Odion Ighalo has been a free agent since August 2025, when his contract with Saudi Pro League side Al-Wehda expired at the end of a two-year deal that produced 23 goals in 68 appearances across all competitions.

The former Watford and Manchester United striker leaves Saudi Arabia as one of the top ten all-time Saudi Pro League goal-scorers with 73 league goals, a tally that puts him 10th on the list ahead of many far more celebrated names.

At 37, however, the goal for his next move is different. Ighalo has publicly indicated he is weighing whether to continue in Asia, return to Europe, explore other leagues or retire from professional football entirely.

A full year and one further transfer window have now passed with no destination confirmed. Still, he continues to build fitness individually, in case a chance comes knocking.

2. Henry Onyekuru

The former Everton, Anderlecht and Monaco winger’s summer has taken the sharpest turn of the four. Henry Onyekuru joined Turkish Süper Lig side Gençlerbirliği on a free transfer from Al-Fayha in July 2025, hoping to rediscover the form that made him one of West African football’s brightest talents in the late 2010s, but the reunion with Turkish football never took off.

Across the 2025/26 Süper Lig season, Onyekuru failed to score or create an opening for his teammates before picking up a muscle injury in February that further disrupted his season.

Gençlerbirliği opened contract-termination talks in July 2026, and the agreement to end his deal has since been finalised, leaving the 29-year-old winger without a club.

3. Joe Aribo

Perhaps the most conventional of the four exits, Joe Aribo simply reached the end of a contract, and neither side wanted a renewal.

The 30-year-old midfielder left Southampton at the end of June 2026 after four turbulent years that included Premier League relegation, a January 2026 loan spell at Leicester City and, ultimately, no place in the Saints’ plans as they attempted to rebuild.

Aribo has been linked with a sentimental return to Rangers, the Scottish Premiership side where he won the 2020/21 title and reached the 2022 Europa League final after joining from Charlton Athletic in 2019.

The move did not materialise, and Aribo is without a club. What makes the situation is that no club has been in active talks with the 34-cap Super Eagles star about agreeing to a deal.

4. Isaac Success

The 30-year-old has been without a club since his contract with Libyan Premier League side Al-Ta’awon SC expired in May.

Success is best known for his then-club-record £12.5 million transfer from Granada to Watford in the summer of 2016, a deal that in hindsight never delivered on either side.

Injuries and inconsistency across five years at Vicarage Road, three at Udinese and one in the UAE have left him fighting for relevance at a stage of his career when most attackers are hitting their peaks.