By Oyinlola Awonuga (The New Diplomat’s Entertainment Fashion and Sports Desk)
Manchester United and The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) have celebrated former Super Eagles striker Odion Ighalo at 31 years.
The NFF wrote on their verified Twitter handle by acknowledging that Ighalo finished top scorer at the 2019 AFCON in Egypt.
“Happy birthday to Afcon 2019 top scorer, @ighalojude. Keep soaring, keep shining, and have a good one.”
And according to United: “Happy birthday to you, @IghaloJude!”
After starting his career at Nigerian clubs Prime and Julius Berger , Ighalo moved to Norwegian club Lyn in 2007.
The following year later, Ighalo was signed by Italian club Udinese, spending most of his tenure on two separate loan spells with Spanish club Granada.
In 2014, he signed for Championship club Watford and was integral in the club’s promotion to the Premier League in the 2014–15 season.
In January 2017, Ighalo joined Chinese Super League club Changchun Yatai for a reported £20 million, before moving to Shanghai Greenland Shenhua.
And in January 2020, Ighalo returned to the Premier League, joining United on loan until the end of the 2019–20 season.
He made his Super Eagles debut in 2015 earned 35 caps scored 16 goals before calling it quit with the team after the 2019 AFCON.
And at the 2019 AFCON he finished top scorer with five goals.
Also, he captained the Flying Eagles squad that featured at the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Egypt.
