'I felt humiliated, they made me feel like an stranger' - Nigeria international about Scottish Club Rangers

Sadiq Umar in action for Rangers - Getty

Sadiq Umar, Nigeria international has recounted his experience with Scottish Club Rangers FC which he described as a nightmare.


Sadiq swho has now joined Italian club Perugia on loan has taken a verbal swipe at manager Steven Gerrard for making him feel like an outcast.

In an exclusive interview with The Sunday Post, the Nigerian, who spent six months at Ibrox on loan from Roma, made a number of claims.

The 22-year-old insists the club still owe him his December wages while he was fined £20,000 for ‘liking’ an Instagram post during his time with the club.

“Gerrard proved to be very different from what I believed he would be.

“At the beginning, I didn’t know anything about the Rangers move. The negotiations were all between Roma and my representatives.

“And when my agent told me about it, I expressed my doubts.

“I wasn’t sure it was the right thing to do. But he kept arguing it would be good for me and my career.

“Then it was Steven Gerrard himself who convinced me.

“He phoned me three or four times, complimenting me and saying he’d back me to be a success.

“It made me feel important and convinced me to agree to the loan switch.

“But when I arrived, I didn’t even have any time to settle down before they brought in another striker, Kyle Lafferty.

“That was when the problems started, and my situation soon degenerated into a real nightmare.”

“All of a sudden, I was told that I could not use the first-team dressing-room any more. Instead I had to go change with the kids.

“Then, after a few days, I was also forbidden to park my car inside the training centre.

“I felt humiliated and kept asking what was the reason for the change of attitude. But I never received any answers.

“Gerrard wouldn’t give any explanation about it, neither to me nor my representatives.”

The situation, Sadiq said, soon got worse.

“I believe absolutely that I was not given a fair chance to show what I can do. They made me feel like a stranger,” he said.

“I started only once (in the League Cup semi-final against Aberdeen) and that was when there were no other strikers available.

“As I say, for me everything went wrong after they brought in another striker (Lafferty).

“That was a surprise to me. I didn’t expect such behaviour,” he concluded.

Sadiq Umar in action for Perugia - Getty

Sadiq opened his account for Perugia at the end of last month with a brilliant solo goal against Venezia, and then followed up with another in the next Serie B fixture against Salernitana – a match in which he was later sent off.
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