FK Kauno Žalgiris have strengthened their player development pathway with the addition of five young footballers from Nigeria following a scouting trip to Abuja late in November.
Central midfielder Al-Amin Khalid, 18, has already made his first-team debut in a friendly against Jagiellonia Białystok. Fellow 18-year-olds Victor Okechukwu and Ibrahim Gambo, both midfielders, are training with the club’s B side.
Centre-back Davis Akusobi, 18, and 19-year-old winger Kabir Adetunji are also due to arrive in Lithuania soon. Adetunji has already been sent on loan to Jonava, who play in Pirma Lyga.
Sporting director Darius Šinkūnas said the club would continue to focus heavily on young Lithuanian players, but also wanted to test a model of recruiting promising talent from abroad. He said the players had been watched in person and were viewed as prospects, while stressing that they would need time to settle and develop.
According to Šinkūnas, the plan is for the newcomers to begin their integration with the B team, where they will develop alongside the club’s leading Lithuanian prospects. He added that they should raise quality and increase competition within the squad.
Khalid, Okechukwu and Gambo are all in line to make their Pirma Lyga debuts this weekend, when Kauno Žalgiris B face Jonava away from home.
Source: https://zalgiris.lt/naujienos/fk-kauno-zalgirio-sistema-papilde-legionieriai-is-nigerijos
