Chinese League not as easy as people think, says Ighalo

Nigeria striker Odion Ighalo says the Chinese League is not a walk in the park in comparison to other leagues around the world, especially Europe.

The former Watford FC forward moved to Changchun Yatai in January 2017.

“The Chinese League cannot be compared to EPL but the league is growing and improving,”Ighalo told TheCable. “It is getting more difficult now though because lots of teams invest in foreign players so it’s more competitive now.

Ighalo said he’s enjoying the process of getting acquainted with the Chinese culture.

“It is a different lifestyle and culture compare to England but I am loving every bit of it. It is a new experience for me,” he said.

The Super Eagles player disclosed that he has started taking classes to improve his mastery of the language.

He said the Chinese love rice as much as Nigerians, hence he tends to indulge as often as he does back at home.

“Well, they have lots of food and almost like Nigeria, they eat lots of rice here so that’s not bad for me because I love rice a lot,” Ighalo said.

“It is a bit difficult with the language but I am trying my best to blend in. I just started a Chinese class with a private teacher 3 times a week to learn the language so as to ease things up for me.

“As you know I can speak Italian and Spanish fluently well. So, I want to learn the Chinese language too.”