Ahmed Musa debunks claims he is eyeing a move to Championship Sheffield Wednesday

SUPER Eagles skipper Ahmed Musa has played down reports linking him with a move to English Championship side Sheffield Wednesday saying he would rather join a Premier League side.

Last month, Musa, 28, left Saudi Pro League side, Al Nassr and currently a free agent, he is now hoping to revive his club career in Europe. In 2018, Musa signed a four year deal with Al Nassr said to be worth in the region of £14.8m with the possibility of it rising to £25m with appearances.

Premier League sides said to be interested in Musa include West Ham, Newcastle United, Sheffield United, Burnley  and Crystal Palace. Apart from England, Musa is also understood to have attracted interest from clubs in Spain, Italy and Russia and it appears that the player is keen on returning to the top flight.

Musa said: “I don’t know where the story about the potential move to Sheffield is coming from because I don’t pay attention to rumours and gossip. With due respect to the club, I left Saudi Arabia to continue my career at the top level in Europe and that’s the ambition.”

In Saudi Arabia, Musa scored 11 goals and provided 14 assists in 57 matches, helping Al Nassr, whom he joined from Leicester City in summer 2018, to the Saudi Pro League and Super Cup titles. A former VVV Venlo of Netherlands player, Musa achieved success in Russia with CSKA Moscow where he won three league titles and added three domestic cup titles, before switching to Leicester City for a club-record fee in July 2016.

He failed to establish himself with the Foxes scoring five goals in 33 matches, with the highlight coming on loan at CSKA where he scored six times in 10 appearances at the Russian club. This was three more than he managed in his 21 Premier League appearances, before his move to Asia.

Musa added: “For some reasons things didn’t actually work out at Leicester but you can’t focus too much on the past. I’d rather try to write a better story if another opportunity to play in the Premier League presents itself.”

Turkish giants Galatasaray and Fenerbahce are also both said to be interested in signing Musa. After Vincent Enyeama (101) and Joseph Yobo (100), Musa is Nigeria’s third most capped player in history, having played 95 matches since his debut aged just 17 in 2010.

He helped the Super Eagles win the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations and played for the team in the past two World Cups. Musa scored twice for Nigeria at the 2014 and 2018 Fifa World Cup tournaments to become the country’s top Mundial goal scorer.