Nnadozie, Okoye bag major honours after brilliant seasons

Nigeria’s first-choice goalkeepers Chiamaka Nnadozie and Maduka Okoye have ended their European club campaigns on a high, earning major individual recognition after standout performances for Brighton & Hove Albion Women and Udinese respectively, PidomNigeria Sports Extra reports.

Super Falcons goalkeeper Nnadozie enjoyed a dream debut season in the English Women’s Super League, where she was named in the Team of the Season by WhoScored.com.

The 25-year-old, who joined Brighton from Paris FC last summer, impressed with six clean sheets in 19 league appearances as the club finished seventh in the standings.

Her inclusion in the best XI came after an outstanding statistical campaign in which she recorded an average rating of 6.87, made 44 saves from inside the box and 18 from outside, while conceding 21 goals.

Nnadozie’s consistency established her as one of the standout goalkeepers outside the league’s traditional top sides, with league winners Manchester City dominating the selection with six players.

Arsenal had two representatives in the XI, while Brighton, Aston Villa and Chelsea each contributed one player.

Nnadozie’s recognition caps a strong first season in England, and she will now turn her attention to the Women’s FA Cup final against City at Wembley on May 31, where she has the chance to end her brilliant campaign with silverware.

Meanwhile, Super Eagles goalkeeper Maduka Okoye also enjoyed a decorated end to his season in Italy after being named Udinese’s Player of the Month for May.

The 26-year-old re-established himself as the first choice at the Serie A club, making 29 appearances and conceding 31 goals in a campaign that also saw him reach a personal milestone.

Okoye became the first Nigerian goalkeeper since Vincent Enyeama in 2016 to record 10 or more clean sheets in one of Europe’s top five leagues.

His May award followed a series of strong performances, including two clean sheets in Udinese’s victories earlier in the month.

Although the club suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat to Cremonese in their penultimate fixture, Okoye still stood out individually, making three saves in a busy display.

Udinese have one final match of the season away to Napoli, but the Nigerian shot-stopper has already been rewarded for what has been a breakthrough campaign that firmly established him as a key figure for the Italian side.

Both Nnadozie and Okoye’s achievements underline Nigeria’s growing influence in goalkeeping roles across Europe, with the duo continuing to raise their profiles ahead of international duties with the Super Eagles and Super Falcons respectively.