As the 2024/2025 European football season comes to a close, not all Nigerian stars ended the campaign on a high note. While some lifted trophies or finished with individual accolades, others experienced the heartbreak of relegation.
Despite their individual efforts, these players couldn’t prevent their teams from dropping to lower divisions.
Here are five Nigerian players whose teams got relegated in the 2024/2025 season:
1. Wilfred Ndidi – Leicester City
Leicester City endured a challenging season, culminating in relegation from the Premier League. The team lost 25 of their 38 games and conceded 80 goals.
Ndidi featured in 28 matches while registering five assists. The Super Eagles midfielder has been with Leicester City since 2017 when he joined the club from Belgium side, Genk.
Ndidi has been a regular and a key player for the Foxes. But he also suffered relegation with Leicester during the 2022/2023 season.
2. Paul Onuachu – Southampton
Southampton’s return to the Premier League was short-lived, as they were relegated after just one season. The team lost 30 of their 38 games and conceding the most goals in the league (86).
Onuanchu played 25 games, contributing four goals and one assist.
Onuachu only joined the Saints midway through their 2022/23 campaign and he was also part of the Southampton squad that got relegated two seasons ago.
3. Joe Aribo – Southampton
Onuanchu’s teammate Joe Aribo joined Southampton from Rangers in 2022.
He featured in thirty two games for the Saints in the Premier League, scoring three goals.
The 28-year old was present for most of Southampton’s games but his contributions weren’t enough to prevent the team’s descent to the Championship.
4. Ibrahim Alani – Real Valladolid
Real Valladolid finished at the bottom of La Liga, leading to their relegation to the Segunda División.
The team managed only one victory in the latter part of the season and suffered heavy defeats, including a 7–0 loss to Barcelona.
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Eighteen- year old Ibrahim Alani played in just three matches as he tried to make his mark in the first team.
5. Tyronne Ebuehi – Empoli
Empoli’s season ended in disappointment as they were relegated from Serie A after finishing 18th.
Despite reaching the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia, their league performance was insufficient to maintain top-flight status.
Nigerian defender featured in just four games as he returned from a long term injury.
Ebuehi sustained a cruciate ligament injury during Empoli’s Serie A clash with Bologna in March 2024 and only resumed training in January 2025.