IRELAND INTERNATIONAL CHIEDOZIE Ogbene remains coy on his club future, saying he will report to Rotherham United for pre-season training in July while leaving the door ajar for a move elsewhere.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with The Football Family, The42′s weekly football podcast, Ogbene confirmed Rotherham exercised a year’s extension to his contract in the wake of their promotion to the Championship.
“I’ll tell you the truth of the plan for next season”, said Ogbene. “I’ll be at Rotherham on 1 July. We are going to travel to Croatia, I’ll do my mile run and my lactate test and I am going to be with my team-mates. That’s all you need to know.
“They have extended my option year. We are still in talks over a contract, we don’t know what’s going to happen, it’s out of my control. I let my agent do that behind the scenes.
“I am grateful I still have a football club to be playing with. I’m not a player without a club and who doesn’t have interest elsewhere, so it’s good to see that acknowledgement from other teams that they are keen on me. As I said, my head is with Rotherham United an we are trying to find a middle ground. I am ambitious, I want to go to the next level, be it with Rotherham or another team that gives me the opportunity, that’s what I am aiming for right now. I’ll be honest with you, that’s out of my control now, and if I can help Ireland get 12 points in the coming camp that would be better than talking about contracts at the moment.”
He is aware of the clubs with whom he has been linked after a stunning 12 months in his career, which has brought promotion and Papa John’s Trophy success at club level along with a debut appearance and goal for Ireland. Swansea City have been linked with a move for Ogbene, with Rotherham’s Chief Scout Rob Scott reportedly a target for the Welsh club, too.
“I’ve heard rumours, that’s all I have heard”, says Ogbene. “I’ve heard rumours that clubs are interested, but they are rumours and I don’t take them seriously. I don’t like to let rumours change my focus and what I’m trying to do. I leave everything to my agent, he hasn’t rang me to say something serious has been put on the table. Rotherham haven’t contacted me to say there’s something serious, so as it stands now I’m going back to Rotherham United and I am quite happy at Rotherham to be honest with you. the year we had was incredible, when I was in the Championship with Rotherham I was injured and missed a lot of football with the team, and that’s something I want to rectify.”
Listen to the full interview by subscribing at members.the42.ie.
Chiedozie Ogbene was speaking at the launch of the INTERSPORT Elverys FAI Summer Soccer Schools.
