Profile: Justine Ojoka Emmanuel | On trial at Kerala Blasters

Justine Ojoka Emmanuel was a part of the Nigeria U-20 team.

Kerala Blasters are undergoing major changes ahead of the 2023-24 Indian Super League season. The Tuskers recently parted ways with influential midfielder Sahal Abdul Samad, who joined Mohun Bagan Super Giant. Apart from Sahal, the Blasters have also lost a few foreign players after the end of last season.

The likes of Victor Mongil and Apostolos Giannou were let go by the Blasters. As a result, Kerala are on the lookout for new foreign talents. They’ve already roped in Australian forward Jaushua Sotirio for the upcoming campaign.

On top of that, they appear to be on the lookout for another foreign striker. Out of nowhere, the Tuskers recently announced that Nigerian forward Justine Ojoka Emmanuel is currently on trial with them during the pre-season training in Kochi. Who exactly is the young Nigerian? We look at him.

Prior experience

Justine Ojoka Emmanuel has spent his football career in his home country of Nigeria, going up the ranks after taking up football as a young kid. He managed to impress enough to play for the Nigeria U-20 national team just before the U-20 African Cup of Nations that was held a few months ago.

Justine made a few appearances for the Nigerian U-20 side over the last year or so. He also scored in a friendly game against Paul E-Sports Academy to showcase his goal-scoring ability. Emmanuel excels at playing up front for his side and is a vibrant centre-forward who is aiming to tap into his best years with the Indian club.

https://twitter.com/KeralaBlasters/status/1679838206861381633

Type of player

The young Nigerian forward is a natural No. 9 who is suited to lead the line for his side. He is a clinical goal-scorer, possessing a range of finishing abilities inside the final third. Emmanuel can also move the ball forward well and is pretty sound with it while in possession.

He is blessed with a decent pace and can read the game pretty well, as proven in his few performances for the Nigerian U-20 side. Justine can also use his physicality to link up nicely and help create chances – while also personally timing his movement well to get behind the defenders and emerging as a tormenting factor in the final third.

What he might bring to the team

Even though this deal isn’t official right now, as the Nigerian is only on trial, Justine has a chance to prove his quality and earn a place in the Kerala Blasters squad. The Tuskers have shown their ability to play some slick, free-flowing attacking football under Ivan Vukomanovic, but lacked that extra bite in the final third for major portions of last season.

On top of everything else, Justine has to prove that he’s a clinical goal-scorer who won’t waste chances created by the likes of Adrian Luna. He needs to show that he can bring that efficient goal-scoring ability to the team that Kerala Blasters missed a lot in the key moments of last season.

The youngster could bring more steel to their frontline with his proactive presence and add more energy to the team. He could be an ‘x-factor’ due to the relatively unknown nature around him and opponents not really scouting much of him either. Justine possesses an unpredictable style that can delete the rustiness in Kerala’s attack and make it even more open than usual.

For the time being, the Nigerian forward has to perform to his utmost ability in training to impress Vukomanovic. Only if he can score a lot of goals and prove himself as the ultimate team player, his trial will be converted into a permanent move, after which he could fire up the Indian Super League (ISL) season.