Umar Sadiq facts for kids
Sadiq with Nigeria at the 2016 Summer Olympics
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| Personal information | |||||||
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| Full name | Umar Sadiq Mesbah | ||||||
| Date of birth | 2 February 1997 | ||||||
| Place of birth | Kaduna, Nigeria | ||||||
| Height | 1.92 m (6 ft 4 in) | ||||||
| Position(s) | Striker | ||||||
| Team information | |||||||
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Current team
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Valencia (on loan from Real Sociedad) |
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| Number | 12 | ||||||
| Youth career | |||||||
| Kuso Boys | |||||||
| Future of Africa | |||||||
| Football College Abuja | |||||||
| 2014–2015 | Spezia | ||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||
| 2014–2016 | Spezia | 0 | (0) | ||||
| 2014 | → Lavagnese (loan) | 1 | (0) | ||||
| 2015–2016 | → Roma (loan) | 6 | (2) | ||||
| 2016–2020 | Roma | 0 | (0) | ||||
| 2016–2017 | → Bologna (loan) | 7 | (0) | ||||
| 2017 | → Torino (loan) | 3 | (0) | ||||
| 2018 | → NAC Breda (loan) | 12 | (5) | ||||
| 2018 | → Rangers (loan) | 1 | (0) | ||||
| 2019 | → Perugia (loan) | 17 | (3) | ||||
| 2019–2020 | → Partizan (loan) | 24 | (12) | ||||
| 2020 | Partizan | 10 | (6) | ||||
| 2020–2022 | Almería | 79 | (40) | ||||
| 2022– | Real Sociedad | 35 | (4) | ||||
| 2025– | → Valencia (loan) | 1 | (0) | ||||
| International career‡ | |||||||
| 2016 | Nigeria U23 | 6 | (4) | ||||
| 2022– | Nigeria | 12 | (1) | ||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 11 January 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 18 November 2024 |
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Umar Sadiq Mesbah (born on February 2, 1997) is a professional footballer from Nigeria. He plays as a striker, which means he's a player who tries to score goals. Currently, he plays for La Liga club Valencia. He is on loan from Real Sociedad. He also plays for the Nigerian national team.
Sadiq used to play for the Nigeria under-23 team. He was a key player when they won a bronze medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Contents
Umar Sadiq's Football Journey
Starting Out in Football
Umar Sadiq was born in Kaduna, Nigeria. He started playing football on the streets when he was very young. Later, he joined a local team called Kusa Boys. After that, he played for the Future of Africa Football Academy. Finally, he went to the Football College Abuja.
In 2013, Sadiq traveled to Croatia with his team. They played in a youth tournament called Kvarnerska Rivijera. Sadiq was the best scorer in the competition. His team even won the championship!
Playing for Spezia
Because he played so well in Croatia, an Italian club called Spezia signed Sadiq. He didn't play for their main team, but he played a lot for their youth teams. In the 2014–15 season, Sadiq became the top scorer in the Campionato Primavera, which is a youth league. He scored an amazing 26 goals in just 24 games.
Loan to Lavagnese
Soon after joining Spezia, Sadiq went on loan to Serie D team Lavagnese. He played his first senior game for them in the last match of the 2013–14 season.
Loan to Roma
In July 2015, Sadiq joined Roma on a one-year loan. He moved with his teammate Nura Abdullahi. Sadiq scored eight goals in his first three youth matches for Roma. He then made his Serie A debut on November 21. He came into the game for the last two minutes against Bologna.
He scored his first goal on December 20, just seven minutes after coming on as a substitute. This helped his team win 2–0 against Genoa. On January 6, 2016, Sadiq scored his second goal in his first start for Roma. He scored early in the game, which ended in a 3–3 draw against Chievo. He finished that season with two goals in six Serie A games.
Playing for Roma
On June 21, 2016, Roma decided to sign Sadiq permanently until 2020. He went with the main team to the United States for a tournament. He scored in his only game against Paris Saint-Germain.
Moving Around: Loan Spells
Sadiq went on several loan spells to gain more experience.
- In August 2016, he was loaned to Bologna. He played in seven games before returning to Roma.
- In August 2017, he joined Torino on loan.
- In January 2018, Sadiq moved to the Dutch team NAC Breda for six months. He scored five goals in 12 games and helped them avoid being relegated.
- In July 2018, Sadiq joined Scottish Premiership team Rangers on loan. However, his loan ended early after only four games.
- In January 2019, Sadiq joined Serie B team Perugia. He scored three goals in 17 games.
- In July 2019, Sadiq went on loan to Serbian club Partizan. He scored his first goal for them in a 4–0 win. He also scored two goals in a Europa League game against Astana. On November 22, he scored his first hat-trick (three goals in one game) in a 6–2 win.
Success at Almería
On October 5, 2020, Sadiq joined the Spanish team UD Almería on a five-year contract. He quickly became a very important player for them. He scored many goals and helped Almería get promoted to La Liga, the top Spanish league.
Joining Real Sociedad
On September 1, 2022, Sadiq signed a contract with Real Sociedad until 2028. Just two days later, he scored his first goal for them in a 1–1 draw against Atlético Madrid. He also played against Manchester United in the Europa League.
However, a few days later, Sadiq got a serious knee injury during a game against Getafe. He had to have surgery and missed the rest of the season.
At the start of the 2023–24 season, Sadiq returned to playing. He came on as a substitute in a 1–1 draw. He also made his UEFA Champions League debut against Inter Milan. On November 26, 2023, Sadiq scored his first goal of the season in a 2–1 win over Sevilla. He scored another amazing goal less than a week later against CA Osasuna.
On Loan to Valencia
On January 4, 2025, Valencia announced that Sadiq would join them on loan until June 30, 2025.
Playing for Nigeria
In July 2016, Sadiq was chosen to be part of Nigeria's team for the 2016 Summer Olympics. He played in all six of his team's games. He scored four goals in the tournament, including two goals in the game where Nigeria won the bronze medal against Honduras.
After playing well for Partizan and Almería, Sadiq was called up to the Nigerian national team. This was for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matches.
In December 2023, Sadiq was named in the Nigerian team for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations. But he got injured in early January 2024 and was replaced by another player.
Honours
Umar Sadiq has won several awards and titles with his teams:
Roma Primavera
- Campionato Nazionale Primavera: 2015–16 (This is a top youth league in Italy)
Almería
- Segunda División: 2021–22 (This is the second division of Spanish football)
Nigeria U23
- Olympic Games bronze medal: 2016
Images for kids
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Sadiq with Nigeria at the 2016 Summer Olympics
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Sadiq in action for Nigeria against Colombia at the 2016 Olympics
See also
In Spanish: Sadiq Umar para niños
