The reigning Czech First League champions have confirmed the signing of former Akwa United and Kano Pillars midfielder
Ubong Ekpai has joined Czech First League giants Slavia Prague from Viktoria Plzen.
The 25-year-old midfielder teamed up with the Red and Whites after completing a two-season loan stint at Ceske Budejovice.
Ekpai has been handed a three-year contract that will keep him at the Sinobo Stadium until 2024.
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While expressing his desire to win titles at Slavia Prague, the former Kano Pillars and Akwa United star is happy to reunite with his former coach at Liberec, Jindrich Trpisovsky.
” I expect a very challenging season ahead of us. I’m part of Slavia now, so I have to say, we won the league,” he told the club website.
“If we want to control it again, we will have to work hard and fight to achieve everything we want to achieve this year.
“I want to prove a lot of things. I want to win all the Czech Cups and play in the Champions League or the Europa League.
“I think we have the quality to win the league and the cup. Those are my ambitions.
“Coach Trpisovsky is like my father. We worked together in Liberec before and he knows me well.
“I understand what he wants me to do, we understand each other well. I wanted to leave in Liberec, but he said to me, ‘Boy, you’re not going anywhere, I really want you to stay here with me. There are still great things ahead of us that we want to do together.’
“I disobeyed him and left, but thank God we’re meeting again now. He is good at working with foreigners, which cannot be said for every coach in the Czech Republic.”
Despite the presence of Nicolae Stanciu, Lukas Provod, Oscar Dorley, Ibrahim Traore, Michal Beran and Denis Visinsky in Trpisovsky’s squad, Ekpai has vowed to work hard in a bid to get regular playing opportunities.
“Of course, it will be difficult because we have a lot of quality players. But I have a lot of qualities, too,” he added.
“It’s going to be tough, everyone’s going to have to work. The best who work the most, score the most goals, will play.
“That’s football in big clubs. We have a lot of quality players; everyone has their own strengths that they can show on the field. It’s going to be hard, but I’m ready for it.”
