ISL Transfers: Bartholomew Ogbeche set to sign for Hyderabad FC
In a startling development, it has come to light that 2020-21 ISL champion Bartholomew Ogbeche is set to sign for Hyderabad FC for the upcoming season, sources close to Sportskeeda have revealed.
The striker, who has previously plied his trade for Kerala Blasters FC and NorthEast United FC, will make the switch from Mumbai City FC – just a few months after helping the Islanders to their maiden ISL title.
The news could act as a boost to Hyderabad FC, especially as they look to build on an encouraging 2020-21 campaign. In the term gone, the Nizams, powered by a string of Indian youngsters, performed admirably and missed out on the semi-finals by just a couple of points, eventually finishing 5th post the league stages.
However, for a team that entertained the audiences with an attractive brand of football, Hyderabad FC couldn’t muster the requisite number of goals towards the later stages of the ISL – something that ultimately pulled them down.
Moreover, with Liston Colaco leaving and uncertainty existing around Aridane Santana’s future, Hyderabad FC’s attacking options for the upcoming season looked pretty thin.
Thus, it isn’t much of a surprise that they’ve decided to act early in the transfer window and Bartholomew Ogbeche’s prospective signing certainly seems a step in the right direction.
Ogbeche has been a consistent performer in the ISL
Throughout his stint in the ISL, Ogbeche has been a consistent performer, having notched up more than 8 goals in each of his three seasons. While he ended the 2020-21 term with 8 goals and 3 assists, he was even more prolific during his time at the Kerala Blasters (2019-20) and NorthEast United FC (2018-19), where he bagged 15 and 12 goals, respectively.
So far, Hyderabad FC haven't made Ogbeche's acquisition official, although that seems more a case of when, rather than if, at the moment.