Premier League goal machine rejected lucrative offer from China

Watford striker Odion Ighalo has sensationally revealed he turned down £300,000-a-week from Chinese Super League side Hebei China last summer, reports the Daily Mail.

Igahlo, 26, has been in sensational form for Watford over the last two years and his goals have been vital behind their rise into the Premier Legue.

The Nigeria international has also made the seamless transition into England’s top-flight and his performances, that already look to have preserved Watford’s Premier League status, have reportedly courted the attentions of some of the league’s biggest clubs.

However, it all could have been different for Ighalo, had he accepted the mouth-watering amounts of money being thrown at him from the Chinese Super League; a league that has already signed Jackson Martinez, Gervinho, Tim Cahill and Burak Yilmaz.

“I was very close,” Ighalo said when he asked about whether he was close to joining Hebei China. “They made a £10m bid and were offering me £200,00-a-week; a four-year contract. I couldn’t sleep for three days. That kind of money is not easy to turn down. Some team-mates in the dressing room were saying, ‘you can’t miss this chance”. But I don’t jump into decisions like that.

“I prayed about it, and God said it was not for me, no matter how much money it was. I knew God would direct me. When I said I don’t want to go, they offered me more money, almost £300,000-a-week. I told them it’s not about the money."

Watford will now be delighted he opted to stay looking back with hindsight. Ighalo is the third highest goalscorer in the Premier League (14) and no player has played a larger contribution to their team’s goals than the Watford forward (52%).

For more stats on Odion Ighalo, click here to visit his WhoScored player page