Udinese coach Kosta Runjaic is backing Super Eagles goalkeeper Maduka Okoye to end the Serie A season strongly after praising the Nigerian’s growth and maturity during the campaign, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
The 26-year-old has been one of Udinese’s standout performers this season, starting 28 of the club’s 36 league games, keeping 10 clean sheets and helping the team remain on course for a top-half finish in Serie A.
Ahead of Udinese’s clash against Cremonese, on Sunday, Runjaic expressed satisfaction with the progress Okoye has made since the start of the season and urged him to maintain his impressive form in the final two matches.
“Okoye’s evolution is in everyone’s eyes. It is important for our defensive phase, he interpreted the decisive moments well and he kept us several times in the game,” the Udinese coach said in quotes revealed by the club’s official website.
“I’m very happy with the levels with which he’s expressing himself. His season we know how it started, it’s not easy to do the preparation without being able to play, but he’s worked a lot on himself.
“In general we are working a lot with him, Inler [Gökhan] often talks to him, the goalkeepers’ trainers work a lot together with him, he is maturing.
“Every player needs a different period to mature and reach his level, now he is playing quiet, focused, he is always present mentally, both in the game and in training.
“I’m seeing the Maduka I want to see and I hope he puts up two great performances in the last two games as well. If his stats are good, the whole team prospers.
“I’m happy about his lifestyle, he’s a good guy, quiet, introverted, he’s worked a lot on his past as well.
“There is talk of young people who happen to make mistakes at this age, we continued to support him and then alone he knew how to get out of a complicated situation, providing excellent performance.
“He’s doing very well and he has to keep it that way,” the German tactician concluded.
Okoye’s resurgence also comes as a timely boost for Super Eagles coach Eric Chelle ahead of the 2026 Unity Cup and the June international friendlies.
The former Watford goalkeeper returned to Nigeria’s starting lineup during the March international break against Iran, making his first appearance for the national team since June 2025. However, he was forced off injured before the second game against Jordan.
Meanwhile, Stanley Nwabali has been without a club since February and was omitted from Nigeria’s squad during the March window, further strengthening Okoye’s case for the number one shirt ahead of the Unity Cup, which begins on May 26 and the international friendlies against Portugal and Poland in June.
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