APOEL Nicosia, CSKA Sofia In Tug-Of-War Over CHRISTIAN OBODO

Two clubs - CSKA Sofia and  APOEL Nicosia - are jostling for the signature of the 28-year-old Nigeria international Christian Obodo.

Eleven years ago, Obodo had trials with CSKA Sofia, but was not offered a contract. For emotional reasons, the ex Plateau United ace would have preferred a transition to Eastern Europe.

Obodo was expected in Bulgaria this weekend to finalize a move to the army team. Udinese sanctioned a loan deal, as CSKA Sofia had agreed to offset a certain percentage of the player's huge wages.

Italy's authoritative sports daily La Gazzetta dello Sport informs that APOEL Nicosia, who featured in the quarter-finals of the last edition of the UEFA Champions League, lead the chase for Christian Obodo.

APOEL have offered the skillful midfielder better financial terms than their competitors from Bulgaria. They have cash to spend after their fairytale run in Europe last season. UEFA recently announced that APOEL's share of revenue for reaching the quarter-final of the Champions League last season is a total sum of 18,062,000 euros.

Christian Obodo, who made 23 appearances for Lecce in the 2011 - 2012 season, has been offered a two - year contract by APOEL Nicosia.