Real Sociedad president Jokin Apperibay has confirmed the possibility of Super Eagles striker Umar Sadiq remaining at the Basque Country club despite ongoing speculation about a potential exit, Footynaija.com reports.
Sadiq’s time at Real Sociedad has not gone according to plan as injuries and poor form have limited his impact at the club. Since joining La Real from UD Almeria in 2022, the lanky center-forward has managed only four goals in 50 appearances, an underwhelming return considering his goal-scoring exploits at Almeria.
He spent the second half of the 24/25 La Liga campaign on loan at Valencia and notched six goals in 19 appearances, showing signs of a resurgent killer instinct in front of goal. Despite this, Los Che opted against signing the Nigeria international on a permanent basis, forcing a return to the Basque Country where an uncertain future awaited.
However, recent developments now suggest that there might be hope of a future at Real Sociedad for Sadiq, with club president Apperibay revealing that the 28-year-old has been looking good in training while also hinting at the possibility of holding on to his services for another season.
What Jokin Apperibay said about Umar Sadiq
“The information I have from Sadiq is that he has trained very well, like the whole group that has stayed in Zubieta,” he said in quotes revealed by Mundo Deportivo.
“Every day, we have spoken to Erik about how Zubieta’s sessions were going, and Sadiq is doing very well. We’ll see. I wouldn’t rule out Sadiq being here next season. I think I’ve been clear, if those players who are in the group of footballers who interest us to come can be done, they will come.
“If not, we feel we have good staff and good players, and we can also achieve the goals with the footballers we have. Last year, we weren’t that far from the planned goals. The young people come with a lot of fresh air, and I commented on it.
“We’re gonna be calm. We have to see how the coach sees the season, and we will make the relevant decisions. We go into important weeks, we have to see how Sergio[Francisco] sees Sadiq, and we will make the decisions depending on what I have said.”
With crucial World Cup qualification fixtures as well as the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations on the horizon, Sadiq will be desperate to impress Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle in the upcoming season. For that to happen though, he must secure regular game time at Real Sociedad or elsewhere.