Nnamdi Ofoborh has opened up on his struggles during a loan spell at Wycombe Wanderers as his move to Rangers nears [Daily Record].
The Gers announced a pre-contract deal for the Bournemouth midfielder on the final day of the winter transfer window and he joined Wycombe that same day on loan until the end of the season.
Ofoborh started the first three matches after his switch and but then dropped down the pecking order, making just five further substitute appearances, the last of which came in March, two months before the end of the season.
The 21-year-old has now explained that a hip problem was impacting his performances, prompting a decision to take him out of the fold so the start of his Rangers career wasn’t jeopardised.
“I was struggling with an injury when I got to Wycombe on loan last season,” said Ofoborh [Daily Record]. “In the last few months, it just got worse. It got to a point where I didn’t feel it was right for the coaches to put me in.”
“It wouldn’t have been fair on me or the team. People didn’t know this because we didn’t speak about it publicly at the time. But I was struggling with the injury and that’s why I didn’t play.
“It was difficult to get my head around it. I could see on social media that Wycombe fans were wondering where I was. They didn’t know if it was down to me not playing well or not being able to be selected. But it was none of that. I just couldn’t do it. I was already at less than 100 per cent when I got there. During and after the first few games, I was nowhere near it.
“So we all thought it would be best to leave me out. I didn’t want to hurt myself or damage my chances before I even got up to Rangers. I had to look at the bigger picture. I spoke to my family and the gaffer at Wycombe – and we decided that it would be better not to ruin anything or make it worse than it was.”
Oforborh went on to assert that he still isn’t fully fit but is confident that he’ll be ready to go when he reports for pre-season at Rangers.
Gers fans will be pleased to finally have an explanation for Oforborh’s struggles at Adams Park, as an element of mystery had previously surrounded his stint there.
There’s no getting away from the fact that his preparation for his move to Ibrox has been far from ideal, though.
Ofoborh is a talented and powerful young player, but he has less than 40 senior appearances under his belt and it’s tough to see how he will genuinely challenge senior internationals for a spot in the Rangers midfield next season.
In other news, a Rangers loan ‘beast’ impressed once again overnight alongside a much-maligned former Ger.
