Maduka Okoye: Clash over Sign-on Fee

His signing for Watford was not only seen as good move but one that would take his career to a greater height. However, with just few weeks after the deal with the Vicarage Road side was sealed, his present club- Sparta Rotterdam and former club- Fortuna Düsseldorf clashed over share of the seven million euro spoil Watford coughed out to sign Maduka Okoye. The Nigerian safe hand has however pitched tent with his former club in the row

Super Eagles first choice goalkeeper Maduka Okoye has waded into public spat between Fortuna’s former and present directors.
Okoye has sided with former Fortuna Düsseldorf sports director Lutz Pfannenstiel in his public dispute with current sports director Uwe Klein.

The ugly dispute between the two administrators started after Watford FC signed Okoye for a reported seven million euro from Sparta Rotterdam just before the last international break in November.

Sparta had snatched the young shot-stopper from Fortuna in 2020 free of charge after not playing a single game for the senior team.
But the German side is due a reported one million euros from Okoye’s Watford move because of a sell-on clause in his deal.
But hurt by the massive profit made by Sparta in the deal, Klein had attacked his predecessor for his decision not to renew Okoye’s contract in the summer of 2020. Pfannenstiel firmly rejected this.

Pfannenstiel revealed that he told his successor to renew the talented Nigerian’s contract and not to let him leave Fortuna.
However, on Monday, Klein rejected his predecessor’s accusation via the club’s website, stating that he was a liar.
“I do not allow myself to be publicly accused of lying, and I will no longer let it stand that way,” Klein was quoted on the Fortuna website.

Klein, though, admitted that he had informed Okoye in the summer of 2020 that the contract with Okoye would not be renewed.
But Pfannenstiel would not let the allegations lie unchallenged, and he fought back over the weekend via Bild, as per Wdr.

“If Uwe Klein of all people has the nerve to say something like that in public, then I just have to defend myself and say it very clearly: Uwe Klein doesn’t even blush when he lies,” said the current sports director of the US team in St. Louis City.
But Okoye has waded into the dispute, choosing to support former director Pfannenstiel.
“I have a basic sense of justice and absolutely cannot tolerate the statements that Uwe Klein made,” Okoye told the Rheinische Post, as per Wdr.

“I do not understand why he accuses Lutz Pfannenstiel. Lutz has broken a lot of spears for me and is a man of honour.
“I was ready to sign with Fortuna and continue to offer my bones for the club of my heart, to subordinate myself and to put in my all.”
The Nigerian goalkeeper’s move to Watford will come into effect in January, but the 22-year-old will spend the rest of the season on loan at Sparta Rotterdam.

Meanwhile, Okoye could become the latest Super Eagles player to be ruled out of next year’s Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Cameroon.
The 22-year-old goalkeeper went off injured after 24 minutes in Sparta Rotterdam’s Eredivisie meeting with league leaders Ajax on Sunday afternoon with the score at 0-0. In the 16th minute, Okoye came off his line to punch a Daley Blind cross from the left. While he got a good fist on the delivery, his left shoulder collided with the visitors’ centre-forward Danilo.

After spending minutes receiving treatment down on the turf, the former Fortuna Dusseldorf goalkeeper looked set to carry on. However, after testing out throwing motions, Okoye signalled to the bench with a wince, and Sparta manager Henk Fraser sent on back-up goalkeeper Benjamin Van Leer, whose last appearance for the club came in October 2020, in his place.

While coming off, Okoye got into some rows with Ajax captain Dusan Tadic, who took umbrage at his speed of departure. Both men had to be restrained by their teammates, after which the Nigerian made his way straight down the Het Kasteel tunnel.

Okoye will be assessed by the club, and Nigeria fans will wait with bated breath on the health of the Super Eagles number one, who has grown in leaps since making his international debut in 2019 against Brazil. The German-born goalkeeper has made 13 appearances for Nigeria, and is set to join Premier League side Watford at the end of the 2021/22 league season.

Already, Nigeria has seen energetic midfielder Oghenekaro Etebo ruled out for the AFCON on account of tearing his quadriceps. In further pre-tournament misfortune, only last week striker Victor Osimhen broke his cheekbone and eye socket following a gruesome clash of heads that necessitated surgery, and could be out of action until the end of February 2022.