Ex-Man Utd striker Ighalo explains why he turned down offers from West Ham, West Brom

Odion Ighalo has revealed that he turned down offers from two Premier League clubs before sealing a permanent transfer to Saudi Arabia Pro League side Al-Shabab in the winter transfer market.

The 2019 Africa Cup of Nations top scorer would not disclose the identities of the teams based in Turkey, Spain, Qatar and Italy interested in signing him.

Ighalo felt that there was no point extending his stay in England after he fulfilled his childhood dream of playing for Manchester United at Old Trafford.

The former Udinese and Granada man became the first Nigerian-born player to wear the colours of the Red Devils when he made his competitive debut in a 2-0 win at Chelsea on February 17, 2020.

In an interview with Elegbete Sports TV this week, Ighalo said : "I got an offer from two Premier League teams - West Ham and West Brom - who were ready to pay but what am I going to do in the Premier League again after playing for Manchester United?

"What other team do I want to play for to fulfill my dream? I have already fulfilled my dream, played in Watford and did well, played in Manchester United.

"I had offers from Turkey, from Italy, from Spain but I've played in Italy and Spain before so I wanted a different challenge, a different country, and I had an offer too from Qatar.

"Even I thought I would be even going to Qatar but last minute the Saudi Arabia deal came up."

The 32-year-old Ighalo is credited with 67 appearances in the English top-flight and has sixteen goals to his name.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel