Nigeria forward Umar Sadiq enjoyed a much-needed breakthrough on Wednesday evening as he scored his first-ever Copa del Rey goal for Real Sociedad, helping the La Liga side to a comfortable 2–0 win away to Reus FC Reddis, Footynaija.com reports.
Introduced at halftime, Sadiq immediately injected urgency into the Basque side’s attack.
His sharp movement created the opening for Mikel Goti, who struck four minutes into the second half to put Sociedad ahead.
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The 28-year-old later put the tie beyond doubt in stoppage time, winning a penalty before stepping up to convert from the spot, his first goal for the club since March 2024.
The win sends Sociedad into the third round of the Copa del Rey and brings a personal boost for Sadiq, who has endured a challenging year marked by fitness issues.
In Italy, teenage Nigerian centre-back Honest Ahanor, 17, delivered a night to remember after scoring the final goal in Atalanta’s 4–0 rout of Genoa in the Coppa Italia.
Brought on at the hour mark with Atalanta already leading through goals from Berat Djimsiti and Marten de Roon, the youngster showed composure and presence well beyond his age.
After Mario Pašalić made it 3–0, Ahanor rose highest from a corner to head home his first professional goal, sealing a dominant display at the New Balance Arena in Bergamo.
Atalanta will now face Juventus in the quarterfinals.
Despite his rapid progress, Ahanor was not included in Eric Chelle’s preliminary squad for AFCON 2025, and with Italy coach Gennaro Gattuso keeping a close eye on him ahead of the 2026 World Cup, his international future remains a subject of growing interest.
There were contrasting fortunes for Nigerian players in the English Premier League on Wednesday.
At the Emirates Stadium, Frank Onyeka remained an unused substitute for Brentford, while Arsenal’s young midfielder Ethan Nwaneri was also unused in the Gunners’ 2–0 home win.
At Turf Moor, Lesley Ugochukwu came off the bench for Burnley but could not prevent a 1–0 defeat to Crystal Palace, where Super Eagles midfielder Christantus Uche stayed on the bench throughout. Uche’s diminishing minutes could further harm his prospects of breaking into Nigeria’s AFCON squad.
Elsewhere, Nottingham Forest secured an important 1–0 away win at Wolves despite being without the injured duo Taiwo Awoniyi and Ola Aina.
Wolves introduced Tolu Arokodare in the 81st minute, but the striker was unable to salvage an equaliser.
Tosin is a Chelsea legend pic.twitter.com/A9THqpetP3
— Arsenal Team (@_ArsenalTeam) December 3, 2025
At Elland Road, Tosin Adarabioyo endured a difficult evening as his defensive error contributed to Chelsea’s 3–1 defeat to Leeds United.
