Ex-Eaglet, Udoh, Joins Heartland This Week

Former Golden Eaglets’ defender, Kingsley Udoh, could be set to completing a short-term deal this week with Globacom Premier League side, Heartland Football Club, Naijaligue.blogspot.com understands.

The news of the player’s decision to join the 2009 CAF Champions League finalist was made known by Udoh himself during a brief discussion with Naijaligue.blogspot.com last Saturday.

“At the moment, I am in Owerri with Heartland and I am just waiting to sign for them after the Week Nine matches,” Udoh, who won the FIFA Under-17 World Cup in 2007 with the Nigerian Under-17 national team, informed Naijaligue.blogspot.com.

But the player did not want to disclose if the deal would be on a long-term since he was supposed to have sealed a deal with Belgian club, KVK Kortrijk, in the European summer transfer window.

Udoh revealed to Naijaligue.blogspot.com that after meeting the Belgian club and featuring in training sessions and friendly matches for it, he could not tie down a deal due to the unavailability of his International Transfer Certificate (ITC).

“I have been in Belgium but they couldn’t get my ITC and that is why I have decided to return to Nigeria and play for Heartland,” he offered.

The management of the Naze Millionaires would be putting up Udoh’s particulars before the Nigeria Premier League (NPL) as one of the players that it wishes to sign on after the transfer window re-opened on Monday.

Assistant coach of the Owerri-based club, Ben Iroha, also confirmed that Udoh has been training the Premier League side for some days and is confident that a deal would be sealed this week for the centre-back.

“Yes, he has been with us for a while now. He has been training with the team and we wait till the transfer window re-opens when his case will come up,” Iroha began when Naijaligue.blogspot.com demanded to know the status of the player at Heartland FC. “I can tell you that the deal is 85 per cent done and by the end of this week, he should be a Heartland player.”

However, Naijaligue.blogspot.com also understands that Udoh had to return to Nigeria in a bid to facilitate the release of his ITC since he was unattached to any club when the deal with KVK Kortrijk was brokered in the summer European transfer window.