Super Eagles captain William Troost-Ekong has explained why he left PAOK Thessaloniki to join Saudi Pro League side Al-Kholood despite winning the league title with the Greek side, according to a Soccernet—ng report. 

The 31-year-old last played an official club game for PAOK in December, just before the AFCON 2023 tournament kicked off in Ivory Coast. After the tournament, he suffered an injury that kept him out of action until the end of the season.

He did well in Côte d’Ivoire, and many Middle Eastern clubs were interested. In the end, he signed with Al-Kholood for about €1.1m.

Ekong said he considered the Middle East a potential move after winning the POTY award at the AFCON tournament.

“It wasn’t on my radar before the AFCON. I was playing for the Greek club PAOK. I was playing in Europe, winning the league, which was my first. We’re aiming for the Champions League, and they’ve finally made it to the European League. “During the AFCON, I was trying to focus on doing my best for Nigeria,” the former Tottenham Hotspur player said in an interview with The Counter Attack Podcast.

Ekong led Nigeria to a second-place finish in Saudi Arabia and then had surgery on his right leg to repair a muscle injury. Time off the pitch meant he had to focus on recovery and consider his future as a footballer.

“After that, the rumors started, and my agent spoke with many clubs from around the world, but there was a lot of interest from Saudi Arabia.” After that, I was just focused on getting fit again. We talked about everything when we started up again at the beginning of the season. I decided that if the offer was right, I wanted to go for it. But at the same time, everyone talked about how to guarantee your future there. I also had to think about my family and kids.

Ekong played in Nigeria’s two AFCON 2025 Qualifying games against Benin Republic and Rwanda, marking his return to the Super Eagles team after he missed the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in June.