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Ifeanyi Ndukwe Seals Loan Move To Levante Of Spain, After Work Permit Rules Block Deal With Liverpool

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Nigerian-born defender Ifeanyi Ndukwe will play this new season on loan at Levante of Spain, after UK Work Permit restrictions blocked clearance papers that would have allowed him to play in the English Premier League.

Sports247 gathered that the Spanish side have already added Ndukwe’s name to their roster for the season, following his arrival from Liverpool, which he joined from Austria Wien this summer, before which both clubs had agreed to a deal for him in January.

Read Also: Nigerian Golf Summit Will Help Participants Learn More About Our Sport – Lawal Garba | Sports247 Nigeria

Ndukwe went on to twinkle bright in Liverpool’s pre-season games, but strict rules of UK’s Home Office prevented him from getting a work permit, thereby making him ineligible to play in England and The Reds had to ship him out before the beginning of the new campaign this weekend.

A report by One Football noted, “The 18-year-old was outstanding in pre-season, particularly in the 3-2 defeat to AS Monaco at Anfield. He looked composed alongside Virgil van Dijk.

“Liverpool’s director of global talent, Matt Newberry identified Ndukwe as a player who could eventually break into the first team. The Austrian youngster is an imposing centre-back with recovery pace and outstanding tackling skills, while he is also comfortable with the ball at his feet.

“However, Ndukwe is ineligible to play for Liverpool this season because he does not have a work permit. Liverpool believe Levante offers a good environment for young players to develop, which played a key role in their decision to allow Ndukwe to join them.

“Ndukwe will have the opportunity to gain more first-team experience at Levante. He could be part of Liverpool’s senior side in the 2027/28 season if he impresses with the La Liga outfit.”

Sports247 reports further that the move to Levante provides another opening for Ndukwe, who was born in Vienna, Austria, to a Nigerian father and Russian mother, who backed his football career, which he started at Brigittenau before joining the academy of Wien in 2016.

He captained Austria Wien at under-16 level, prior to being a regular starter with the second team in the 2024/2025 season, when they secured promotion to the 2. Liga, following which he signed a three-year professional contract with the club’s senior squad in June 2025.

On January 26th, 2026, Ndukwe officially joined Liverpool in a deal that was valued at an initial £2.6m (€3m), with additional performance-related add-ons potentially increasing the total fee, which was finalised on March 3rd, once he became eligible upon turning 18.

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Osimhen Scores Again But Injury Scare Raises Fresh Concern For Super Eagles

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Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen produced a mixed night for Galatasaray on Friday, scoring against İstanbul Başakşehir before being forced off with an injury that could raise concerns over his availability for Nigeria’s upcoming 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.

Osimhen opened the scoring in the 17th minute with a stunning effort to put Galatasaray ahead.

Read Also: “My Injury Changed Everything” — Aiyegbeni Reveals How Achilles Blow Ruined Chelsea Move

However, his night was cut short after he appeared to suffer a problem following a challenge with Christopher Operi in the 23rd minute. The Nigerian striker continued briefly but later felt the problem again after making a run behind the defence and signalled that he could not continue.

Osimhen was eventually substituted in the 33rd minute, with Barış Alper Yılmaz coming on as his replacement.

Initial reports describe the problem as a suspected muscle/groin injury, but there is currently no confirmed diagnosis or recovery timeline. Osimhen himself reportedly admitted after the incident that he did not yet know whether the injury was serious.

The timing could be significant for Nigeria.

The Super Eagles are scheduled to begin their 2027 AFCON qualifying campaign against Madagascar on September 23, before travelling to face Guinea-Bissau on September 27.

That leaves Nigeria with just under three weeks before the Madagascar encounter, meaning Osimhen could still have time to recover if the injury proves minor. However, a significant muscle strain or tear could put his participation in doubt.

For now, Osimhen has not been ruled out of the Super Eagles’ upcoming matches, and his availability will depend on further medical examinations and his recovery over the coming days.

The immediate concern for Nigeria will therefore be the results of those assessments.

He scored a spectacular goal, but the biggest question tonight is whether Osimhen will be fit when Nigeria need him most.

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AI compute provider Nscale is looking for $3.5B in pre-IPO financing

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Nscale, a British AI infrastructure company founded just two years ago, has said it may go public as early as later this month. Ahead of that expected IPO, the company is reportedly in talks to raise an additional $3.5 billion.

Bloomberg reported Friday that the company is looking to sell $1.5 billion in convertible notes — a type of loan that can later convert into company stock — to a group of investors, while also seeking an additional $2 billion in financing from Nvidia.

Nvidia also participated in the firm’s Series B funding round in March, a $1.1 billion raise led by investment fund Aker. Nscale hailed its round as “the largest Series B in European history.” The company’s Series A round, in December of 2024, raised $155 million.

TechCrunch reached out to Nscale and Nvidia for comment.

AI infrastructure startups have seen immense growth amid the current era of AI enthusiasm, wherein compute has become a competitive currency.

Nscale recently signed a large deal with Anthropic worth approximately $45 billion. Earlier this week, reports emerged that Nscale had been telling potential investors that it has approximately $103 billion in revenue following the deal. That figure isn’t current sales; it’s a projection based on signed customer leases, according to The Information.

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