Chukwueze, Boniface magic, Okoye shutout set tempo for 2026/27

August 16, 2026 12:46 am

Samuel Chukwueze, Victor Boniface, Victor Osimhen and Maduka Okoye all impressed for their respective clubs at the weekend, setting an encouraging tempo for Nigerian players in Europe ahead of the 2026/27 season, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.

Chukwueze scored one goal and provided two assists as AC Milan defeated Manchester United 4-2 in a pre-season friendly on Saturday.

The Super Eagles winger, who featured for the entire duration of the match, cancelled out Harry Maguire’s early opener by calmly finishing from a lay-off by Goncalo Ramos, having fallen behind inside the second minute.

After Patrick Dorgu restored United’s lead six minutes into the second half, Chukwueze set up Alphadjo Cisse to level matters before teeing up Ramos to head home Milan’s third. Ruben Loftus-Cheek completed the scoring for the Italian side.

Chukwueze will hope to build on the impressive display and repay the faith shown in him by manager Ruben Amorim following his successful loan spell at Fulham last season.

In Newcastle, Boniface scored a stunning late winner as Bayer Leverkusen beat the English side 2-1 in a pre-season friendly at St. James’ Park, as part of the VisitMalta Weekender.

Ibrahim Maza had given Leverkusen an early lead with a 25-yard strike inside the first minute, before Malick Thiaw levelled for Newcastle in the 44th minute. Boniface then settled the contest with a fine finish in the 82nd minute.

The 25-year-old is looking to rediscover his best form after a difficult 2024/25 and 2025/26 in which a loan spell at Werder Bremen was disrupted by a serious knee injury that required surgery in January, restricting him to 11 Bundesliga appearances without a goal.

Leverkusen head coach Carles Martinez said the striker had continued to show progress. “He knows what he has to do. I’m pushing him as well. It’s getting better. His quality is obvious,” Martinez said.

Boniface thanked supporters for standing by him through his difficult spell, saying, “The fans supported me in good times and bad times, and I really appreciate that. We players need their support. I’m really very happy and thank every single one of them.”

Elsewhere, goalkeeper Maduka Okoye kept a clean sheet as Udinese beat Padova 1-0 in their Coppa Italia season opener, having earlier been declared fit for the fixture by coach Kosta Runjaic.

The 26-year-old had been sidelined by a shoulder injury sustained during Udinese’s pre-season training camp in Lienz, Austria, which ran from July 22 to early August, but returned to full training in time for the game.

Also catching the eye was winger Moses Usor, who put in a scintillating display for LASK in a 4-1 win over Austria Wien in the Austrian Bundesliga. The 24-year-old set up Samuel Adeniran for an equaliser before scoring himself to hand LASK the lead, then combined again to tee up Adeniran for a second before laying on a fourth assist for Christoph Lang, before being substituted after 63 minutes.

Usor has now recorded two goals and two assists in three competitive matches this season, a run of form that has intensified calls for Chelle to hand him a place in the Super Eagles squad ahead of the next international window.

Rafiu Durosinmi also continued his fine start to the season, scoring from the penalty spot for Genk on Saturday to make it two goals in as many games.

The 25-year-old, who has set his sights on winning the Belgian Pro League’s top-scorer award this campaign, hopes to follow in the footsteps of compatriots Paul Onuachu and Tolu Arokodare, who have both finished as the Belgian top-flight’s leading scorer, with Arokodare netting 21 league goals for Genk in the 2024/25 season to claim the honour.

Akor Adams marked his competitive debut for Venezia in style, scoring twice and providing an assist as the newly promoted Serie A side came from behind to beat Modena 3-2 in the Coppa Italia first round at the Stadio Pier Luigi Penzo on Saturday.

The Super Eagles striker, who completed a record-breaking move from Sevilla in July, netted his first goal of the campaign in the 26th minute to level the tie after Modena had taken an early lead, before turning provider for Venezia’s second late in the second half and then getting on the scoresheet again two minutes later to seal the comeback win.

Peter Akinbo

Peter, who has been covering sports for PUNCH for close to two years, focuses on combat sports reporting, special features and human angle stories

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