Last Sunday, the Nigerian website Own Goal Nigeria claimed that Sporting Lisbon were ahead of West Ham in the race for the midfielder Chukwudi Agor.
The report said the player was recommended to the Portuguese clu’sb scouts by a friend of the Nigeria U-20s manager who played at Sporting for two years.
But on Tuesday, Record claims that Sporting have no interest in the player, and they deny the claims from the Nigerian press and possibly leave West Ham alone in the hunt for the player.
West Ham’s bid was revealed by the ASJ Academy CEO Emeka Amajiriaku, who spoke to All Nigerian Soccer in May: “West Ham have offered Agor Chukwudi a straight contract without him having to undergo trials, very soon he’ll turn 18.”
“We are studying the offer and it is very likely we will accept it. We are interested in the player’s development and not the money that is being offered.”
Agor only turns 18 in November, so the move will have to wait until then. There haven’t been big updates from the Nigerian media since May, but it’s still interesting how Record didn’t take long to rule out Sporting as competition.