Tochukwu Nnadi has settled into French football quickly enough to know exactly what he is up against, and honest enough to admit he wants a bigger slice of it, Footynaija.com reports.
The 22-year-old defensive midfielder joined Marseille from Belgian side Zulte Waregem for €6 million on the winter transfer deadline in February, becoming the fifth Nigerian to represent the 1993 European champions. He did not get his first start until April under head coach Habib Beye, and even then only managed limited minutes early on before forcing his way into contention in the final stretch of the season.
When he did play, he delivered. Marseille finished fifth in Ligue 1, missing Champions League qualification by two points, and Beye’s future at the club remains uncertain heading into the summer. For the Nigerian, a coaching change could either open a door or close one.
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His journey to the Stade Vélodrome has been anything but straightforward. Born in Ihiagwa in Owerri West, Imo State, he left Nigeria as a teenager to train at the Madenat Alamal Football Academy in Dubai before joining Botev Plovdiv in Bulgaria, spending four seasons there before moving to Zulte Waregem in Belgium. Each step was a level up. France is the steepest one yet.
The intensity is on another level
He has felt the difference.
“The intensity and speed are on another level,” Nnadi said, per Sports247, acknowledging that Ligue 1 has tested him in ways Belgian football never did.
The frustration of limited appearances has not dulled his hunger.
“I would have loved to play more matches,” he admitted, a sentiment that reflects both his ambition and the reality of arriving mid-season at a club already deep into its campaign.
“I’m working hard every day to get better,” he added.
