Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) champions Rangers in a bid to successfully defend their title have strengthened their playing personnel with one of their former strikers, Chikeluba Ofoedu.
Rangers begin their title defence in the NPFL against El-Kanemi Warriors at the Nnamdi Azikiwe on Saturday and one of the areas the technical crew of the club has identified as a knotty area is in the striking position after they failed to impress over two legs in their first playoff round in the CAF Champions League against Comoros Island’s US Zilimadjou.
Ofoedu, 31, has been brought in the add to the champions’ attacking personnel after leaving the club 12 years ago. Chico, as he is fondly called, netted 12 times in his only season with Rangers in 2011/12 before leaving to join Turkish side, 1461 Trabzon
The striker, who last featured for Israeli side AS Ashdod in 2022, is also viewed as an additional to help in Rangers’ pursuit in the Champions League and President Federation Cup.
Ofoedu is “excited” with the prospect of making a return to Rangers and the NPFL and believes the club can achieve “great things this season.”
“I am very glad to have got another opportunity to appear in the colours of the great Rangers International FC, the champions of Nigeria league. I feel very excited. This was where it all started and I knew that a time like this was going to come and it has happened now.
“I am very optimistic of continuing from where I left off the last time I defended the badge of this great club. We have a bunch of great talents around now and we are like a family since I joined in training and I believe that the unity will lead us to achieving great things this season,” Ofoedu told the club’s media after being unveiled.
Rangers CEO/General Manager, Barrister Amobi Ezeaku, also believes that Ofoedu is an important addition to the club’s squad for the new campaign.
“These are quality acquisitions to our team. Ofoedu is a great attacker of high repute. He featured for us sometime back and exported his talent to Europe from where he is returning to join forces with the squad to help us achieve our target for the season. Effimi Nsi, Williams Wonah, Ofokansi Michael, Onyekwere Nnaemeka and Daniel Onyia are all great footballers that we are glad to have gotten their signatures to defend the badge of Rangers. We are optimistic that the blending with other members of the team won’t take a long time,” said Ezeaku.
Ofoedu will be available for selection when Rangers begin their title defence against El-Kanemi Warriors on Saturday.