Newly-promoted Serie A side Benevento expresses interest in taking Mikel to Italy

FORMER Super Eagles skipper Mikel Obi could be on his way to Italy next season after newly promoted side Benevento expressed an interest in signing him as it prepared for life in Serie A.

Mikel, 33, is currently a free agent after parting company with Turkish club Trabzonpor in March following a dispute over the coronavirus pandemic. Transfer market expert Gianluca Di Marzio, said that Benevento are interested in signing Mikel, who is currently on the radar of Brazilian clubsides Botafogo and Sport Club Internacional.

Benevento has started rebuilding its squad ahead of a return to the Serie A and are on the brink of confirming the capture of Lille star Loic Remy, who, like Mikel, previously played for Chelsea. Former Porto star Juan Manuel Iturbe and German World Cup winner Andrè Schurrle are also on Benevento's radar.

In 2006, Mikel joined Chelsea where he played for 11 years before moving to China with Tianjin Teda in 2017. After two years in China, he returned to England on a short-term deal with Middlesboro, before joining Trabzonspor on a free transfer in July 2019.

During a 14-year international career between 2005 and 2019, Mikel played 88 times for Nigeria, scoring six goals. After last year’s Africa Cup of Nations, Mikel retired from international football.