Umar Sadiq scored his 12th goal for Valencia in their match at San Mamés, bringing his tally to 12 in 38 appearances for the club. The Nigerian striker secured mathematical safety for his team and keeps alive their hopes of challenging for a higher finish in the final three matches of the season.
Once again, as he did last season, Sadiq is proving to be decisive. A true talisman. Since returning to Mestalla in January, Valencia have won nearly half of their games with him on the pitch. Sadiq possesses a special aura, a connection with victories and goals that makes him instrumental, especially in the white-and-black shirt.
Specifically, Valencia have won 47.1% of the LaLiga matches in which Umar Sadiq has played this season—17 games, with eight wins, two draws, and seven defeats. Before his arrival, Carlos Corberán’s side had only won 16.7% of matches without the Nigerian, after 18 games (three wins, seven draws, eight losses), according to Opta data.
Moreover, Sadiq has a romantic relationship with scoring: whenever he has found the net in LaLiga—across 76 appearances for Almería, Valencia, and Real Sociedad—his team has never lost. The Nigerian striker has scored 15 LaLiga goals (nine for Valencia, four for Real Sociedad, two for Almería) in 14 different matches, and his team has never lost any of those 14 games, recording seven wins and seven draws.