Nigerian winger Chidera Ejuke has expressed his excitement at leading the dribbling charts across Europe’s top five leagues this season, Soccernet.ng reports.
The 26-year-old, now plying his trade at Sevilla, has completed 23 successful dribbles, surpassing the likes of Barcelona’s young prodigy Lamine Yamal.
In addition to Ejuke’s achievement, fellow Nigerian Moses Simon, currently in fine form for Nantes, ranks sixth on the list with 20 dribbles.
Simon is the standout dribbler in Ligue 1, leading the charts there. He is followed closely by Toulouse’s Yann Gboho and Le Havre’s Antoine Joujou.
Ejuke’s rise to the top comes after an impressive start to his La Liga journey. Since joining Sevilla in the summer, the former CSKA Moscow man has quickly made his mark in Spain.
In a recent interview with Marca, he shared his thoughts on being ranked ahead of some of football’s biggest names like Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal and Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappé and Vinicius Junior.
When asked about leading the dribble count over such star players, Ejuke said:
“It’s exciting to hear that. It’s exciting because obviously, like I said, I want to do my thing, I want to have fun on the field, but I also want to contribute to the team in a positive way, impact the team with my ability. I work hard for that.
“There are many very good dribblers in the Spanish league. Yamal, Vinicius, Mbappé… There is an incredible level. I can do something too (laughs). My things.”
Ejuke is no stranger to dribbling accolades. Back in 2021, the CIES Football Observatory ranked him as the third-best dribbler globally during his time at CSKA Moscow.
The Super Eagles star opened his La Liga account last Tuesday with an 85th-minute match-winner in their 2-1 victory against Real Valladolid at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán Stadium.
The winger, who has eight caps for Nigeria, was part of the Super Eagles squad at the 2022 Africa Cup of Nations.