The Nigerian striking sensation who is more desirable than Victor Osimhen

Sam McGuire

• Updated: 15 Nov 2023 19:49 GMT
• 4 min read

Brighton rarely make mistakes in the transfer market but their decision not to bring Victor Boniface to the club during the summer is starting to look like one.

The 22-year-old forward spent last season with Royal Union Saint-Gilloise having signed from Bodo/Glimt in August. For those who aren’t aware of this, Brighton owner Tony Bloom was the Belgian side’s majority shareholder from 2018 to 2023 and there’s still a working relationship between the two clubs. For example, Simon Adingra spent last season on loan with USG and he’s now starring for the Seagulls.

In fact, Adingra finished as the club’s top scorer in the league during the 2022/23 campaign as they claimed a third-place finish to qualify for the Europa League.

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Boniface was the club’s top scorer across all competitions having finished as the joint-top scorer in the Europa League with six. He shared the award with Marcus Rashford.

So Brighton, famed for their scouting network, would’ve known all about the Nigeria international. He would’ve been on their radar before most top European clubs were even aware of the 6ft3 powerhouse forward.

Yet they watched on this summer as Bayer Leverkusen paid a relatively modest €20 million to pry Boniface away from USG. He’s been in the Bundesliga just a couple of months but he’s already being linked with big-money moves to the Premier League.

Newcastle United are believed to be interested in the B04 No22 while it was reported Spurs also had an interest in the free-scoring forward as they look to replace Harry Kane. Other teams will no doubt be watching his development closely after his breathtaking start to life in Germany.

Boniface has seven goals and five assists in 957 minutes in the Bundesliga. He’s one of the key reasons why Xabi Alonso’s men find themselves clear at the top of the table having taken 31 points from a possible 33. The 22-year-old also has three goals and an assist in 230 Europa League minutes. To really hammer the point home on just how influential he has been for the German side, he’s been involved in a goal in 10 of the 15 matches (66%) he’s appeared in.

By comparison, Brighton’s top scorer in the league this season is Evan Ferguson. He’s found the back of the net on five occasions but has been involved in a goal in just three of his 14 matches (21%). Roberto De Zerbi’s men started the season in fine form but are without a win in the Premier League since September. Coincidentally, Ferguson has just one goal in his last 10 outings for the Seagulls. Joao Pedro moved to the Amex in the summer from Watford and he has six goals to his name with four of those coming in the Europa League. He’s been involved in a goal in six of his 17 appearances (35%) and four of his goals have come via the penalty spot.

For a bit more context here, just two of Boniface’s 10 goals have been penalties.

So, the three-cap Nigeria international has scored more goals and he’s delivering in the final third with greater regularity.

More top teams are now in the market for traditional centre-forwards and Boniface certainly fits the bill. The forward already has an Expected Transfer Valuation of €31m and that is only going to increase if his early season form continues.

In the Bundesliga this term, he is averaging 0.67 goals per 90 from an Expected Goals average of 0.95. So, if anything, he’s underperforming. He’s got an Expected Assists per 90 average of 0.24 in the German top-flight too. He scores and creates.

Boniface is a shot magnet, averaging over five per 90 in the Bundesliga but this appears to be the norm for him. He was averaging over six per 90 for Bodo/Glimt at one stage during his time in Norway. He’s decent in possession, finding a teammate with 70% of his attempted passes. So, he retains the ball and holds it up in the final third.

The No22 ticks a lot of boxes for a lot of clubs. He might end up being more desirable than compatriot Victor Osimhen this summer and the Premier League could be his destination. Brighton might rue their decision to not leverage their relationship with USG.