Romanian giants CFR Cluj have completed the signing of veteran Nigerian defender Kenneth Omeruo, marking the club’s seventh acquisition of the summer transfer window, Soccernet.ng reports.
The 31-year-old joins as a free agent following the termination of his contract with Turkish Super Lig side Kasimpasa on 28 June 2025. Omeruo, who boasts 69 caps for Nigeria, has signed a deal with Cluj that officially takes effect from 1 July, as per Gsp.
The announcement was made by his representative, Anamaria Prodan, who posted a photo with Omeruo and CFR Cluj president Cristi Balaj, moments before the club confirmed the transfer.
Omeruo becomes the sixth Nigerian to feature for the Romanian side, following in the footsteps of Ibe Ogbonna, Nwankwo Obiora, Derrick Ogbu, Phillip Otele, and Peter Michael.
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A towering presence at 1.85m, Omeruo brings a wealth of experience to Dan Petrescu’s squad. He will now compete for a starting berth alongside fellow centre-backs Matei Ilie, Leo Bolgdao, Daniel Dumbrăvanu, and Sheriff Sinyan.
Capped by Nigeria since 2013, Omeruo played a pivotal role in the Super Eagles’ 2013 Africa Cup of Nations triumph and featured in the Confederations Cup later that year.
He also helped the team to a bronze medal finish at AFCON 2019, scoring his first and only international goal in the tournament against Guinea.
Despite his experience, Omeruo has not received a call-up from new Nigeria head coach Eric Chelle, who has yet to select him in any of his first five matches in charge.
Omeruo began his European journey with Standard Liège’s youth team before securing a move to Chelsea in 2012. Though he never played a senior match for the Blues, he was loaned out to several clubs, including ADO Den Haag, Middlesbrough, Kasimpasa, and Alanyaspor.
In 2019, Spanish side Leganés signed him permanently from Chelsea after a successful loan spell, where he featured 51 times in La Liga. He returned to Kasimpasa in 2023 in a €1m deal.
According to Transfermarkt, Omeruo’s current market value is €1.2m, though it peaked at €5m in early 2019.
Now in Cluj-Napoca, the Nigerian defender will be looking to revitalise his club career while pushing for a national team recall.
