After his 14 goals helped keep FC Lorient in French football’s elite department last season, the club’s chances of retaining Terem Moffi seemed very slim, especially with interest from the more sensible European teams. This season, he has scored 10 goals in 14 games for Les Merlus and is just two targets Ligue 1’s most sensitive goalscorer, Kylian Mbappe, and one from Brazil’s Neymar. Its functionality attracted the interest of 3 Premier League clubs: Brighton, Crystal Palace and Aston Villa, with Villa Park at the head. therefore, take more than the persuasion of Lorient intellectuals to save the attacker from “jumping ship”
If we take into account Jeunesfooteux’s report, FC Lorient will struggle to keep their Nigerian striker, Terem Moffi. Brighton’s Premier League trio Crystal Palace and Aston Villa are expected to eliminate Merlus-shaped Super Eagle, while Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach is also in hiding.
Moffi has been notable for FC Lorient this season, contributing a moderate number of goals to the team, and has attracted the interest of some Premier League teams thanks to his perfect play for FC Lorient.
After scoring 10 in 14 games for France, the striker’s confidence returned.
The striker now ranks third among Ligue 1’s smartest scorers, two goals Frenchman Kylian Mbappe and just one Brazilian striker Neymar, who has 11 goals.
However, scoring 10 goals in 1032 minutes played for his club this season, the striker’s functionality has been improved.
The striker is targeted by 3 teams, adding Brighton, Crystal Palace and Aston Villa, according to youngfooters.
The functionality of FC Lorient’s tough striker is being heavily monitored by Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach, according to other sources.
The call of Terem Moffi has joined the list of players that the German club replaces Marcus Thuram, whose contract expires at the end of this campaign.
The 23-year-old, who has a contract with the Ligue 1 team, is obliged to remain at the Stade du Moustoir until the 2024 season.
Aston Villa are interested in signing Moffi in the January window.
Aston Villa is reportedly an imaginable touchdown destination for the Nigerian.
If Villa pursues their interest, they would get a qualified striker who is a handful for defenders. Although Moffi will have to compete with Ollie Watkins and Danny Ings for a starting spot, the fact that Villa is firmly determined to point someone out. In that position it means that there is an opening in the attack.
The strikers’ existing contract in Lorient is set to expire in 2024 and it is believed that a bid of around €20 million would be sufficient to secure their services.
The striker has earned rave reviews this season and would possibly have made his way into the existing Super Eagles set-up despite the flood of players he had for coach Jose Peseiro.
The former Kortrijk star has a genuine star for Lorient this season and would raise the head of the groups in his direction after being connected with an exit from the club last season.
Lorient is one of the fittest groups in Europe’s five smartest leagues right now with six straight wins in the smartest flight, just like La Liga giant Barcelona.
Moffi, his key piece in this race, with his double at the Stade Francis-Le Blé joining his efforts against Olympique Lyon and Auxerre.
With a score of 9. 1, Moffi is the highest-rated Team of the Week player ahead of Rennes’ Martin Terrier (9. 0) and Clermont Foot’s Grejohn Kyei (8. 8).
Against Stade Brestois, the Super Eagles in front recorded 3 shots on goal, record form, made 3 key passes, won two aerial duels and hit 81. 3% of their passes in 34 touches.
With 14 goals in Ligue 1 last season, time for Mbappe, many thought Lorient would fight to remain his jewel, but against all odds, the Enugu born striker stood still.
Bundesliga giants Borussia Dortmund followed Lorient’s newcomer into the block as the German side looked for a replacement for striker Erling Haaland, who moved to Manchester City.
Last season, Moffi took France’s most sensible flight through the storm, scoring 14 goals for humble FC Lorient in his first season in France.
Six of the Nigerians have come in their last 3 games as they propel the long-suffering Les Merlus away from relegation problems.
In fact, Gernot Rohr, former Nigeria coach, believes Moffi can be a wonderful striker in the long term given his qualities.
Moffi made headlines in his home country after scoring the first hat-trick of his career in French Ligue 1 against a club very close to the centre of Rohr, Bordeaux.
“Christophe Pelissier (the Lorient coach) is in a better position than me to know, because he sees him every day in training,” Rohr told French newspaper Ouest France.
“Personally, I’m looking forward to seeing him in training. I think he can be a smart striker; even though the bar is quite high in Nigeria, there have been smart centre forwards.
“But I have to say that what he is doing in Lorient is impressive. “
Rohr added: “He has gained confidence. It shows in his game; He dares to bargain, to make technical gestures that can be done with confidence.
“It’s in a wonderful shape, in complete physical ownership of its media. “
For now, Moffi is not thinking about any other club besides Lorient, he dreams of betting on a bigger club in the future.
“Like any footballer, I dream of betting on clubs. But now my goal is the Lorient.
“Football is the ultimate vital game in Nigeria. When the national team plays, the country stops. Everyone is in front of their TV. I wouldn’t say it’s a religion, but everyone here loves football. “
“I grew up watching Jay-Jay Okocha, Obafemi Martins, Nwankwo Kanu and then Victor Osimhen. I see him play a lot, we play in combination (with the Golden Eaglets), he’s a real example.
“Otherwise, I am in comparison with Romelu Lukaku, but I am far from his level!Otherwise, I love Didier Drogba, especially when he played at Chelsea. I’m also a big fan of Robin Van Persie. It was the best, for me.
Moffi grew up in a circle of footballers’ relatives while his father played as a goalkeeper. His father, Leo, teammate of Alex Iwobi’s father, Chuka, at Vasco da Gama d’Enugu.
The two played together in the local league in the 80s and developed a bond that has now been passed down to their children.
According to the official Ligue 1 website, Moffi and Iwobi spent a lot of time awake before the latter moved to London at the age of six.
A few years later, Moffi left Nigeria for London to complete his studies at the Buckswood Football Academy.
“I managed to get into an English school at the age of 17 through football. I chose this life and sought to succeed in football,” Moffi told Ouest France on the Ligue 1 website.
The 21-year-old joined Lithuanian side Kauno Zalgiris shortly after arriving in England before signing for another Lithuanian club, FK Riteriai.
His time at Riteriai hit Kortrijk, which led him to the Belgian elite in January 2020. Eight months later, Lorient paid 8 million euros to bring him to Ligue 1.
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