'He Is My Idol, I Respect Him Very Much' - Ighalo Credits Martins With Convincing Him To Join Shanghai Shenhua

Published: February 15, 2019

Odion Ighalo has admitted that he chose to join Shanghai Shenhua ahead of other Chinese League clubs in the winter transfer market after talks with Obafemi Martins.

The 2019 AFCON qualifiers leading scorer was speaking to the media during his unveiling at Kangqiao on Friday.

Ighalo has penned a three-year contract with Shanghai Shenhua, who will pay his former team Changchun Yatai 15 million euros, and two of their promising players have moved in the opposite direction.

''Martins is my idol. I respect him very much. He has achieved great success in his career,'' said Ighalo.

''When I knew that I had the opportunity to come to Shenhua, I sent a message to Martins, who told me that Shenhua is a very good club, Shenhua's home and fans are very good.

''I made a decision after talking with him, I can really join this team. There are other teams in the Super League who invited me, but I chose Shenhua.

''I am very satisfied with this decision. I have only been here for two days, but I enjoy the time I have worked, and I can't wait to start this journey.''

Obafemi Martins notched 32 goals in 59 appearances across all competitions during his three-year stint with Shanghai Shenhua.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel