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Anthony Nlebem
Super Eagles and CD Leganes centre defender Kenneth Omeruo says playing in the Spanish League is more tactical compared to the English Premier League.
Omeruo, a 28-year-old former Chelsea defender who joined CD Leganes on a permanent deal in 2019 and was recently named the club captain, says playing in England is quite different from the football played in Spain.
“Playing in England is more physical with lots of aerial balls, but not as tactical and technical as in Spain. As a defender, both experiences have helped me to defend against strong tall attackers. As a defender in the Spanish league, I have also learnt how to play with the balls.”
Omeruo in a chat with PUNCH Sports Extra says it’s an honour to be named Leganes captain with a record 102 appearances for the club.
“It’s an honour to play over one hundred games for CD Leganes. For a long time, I have been a Chelsea player, and I could not achieve that. Coming here and settling down and playing a lot of games is an achievement and great honour to captain a team like Leganes. It’s also a big responsibility and the aim is to lift the team back to LaLiga.”
Omeruo was part of the Nigerian U20 team that reached the quarter-finals at the 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Colombia and has played for Super Eagles at two World Cups, 2014 and 2018 reveals that being disciplined has kept him far.
“I have always maintained discipline and 100 per cent respect for my coaches. In the national team, even when other players are preferred ahead of me, I just train and wait for my opportunity to come.
“I see a lot of players get angry for not making the starting lineup, and it sends a bad message to the coach because these coaches are human. They have 23 players and it’s difficult to select players, especially playing for Nigeria with lots of talents.
“I see it as a privilege to always get called up for the national team to represent Nigeria, whether being in the starting lineup or not. This attitude has also helped me in my club.