Bayer 04 Leverkusen sporting director, Simon Rolfes, has praised Nathan Tella for his ambitious personality amid adversity, Soccernet.ng reports.
The 24-year-old joined Die Werkself from Southampton in August for a fee worth around €18.00m. The deal’s total cost might go up to €23.30m if some clauses are activated.
The former Burnley winger was an important member of the Vincent Kompany team that led the Clarets to the Premier League from the EFL Championships, before moving to Germany. In 45 games for Burnley, Tella scored 19 goals alongside providing five assists.
The Super Eagles winger has struggled to break into Xabi Alonso’s first eleven due to the brilliant form of Jeremie Frimpong at right wing-back and Jonas Hoffman’s experience on the right wing.
Nonetheless, this season represents a huge milestone for Tella, who has scored 12 and provided seven assists in all competitions for Leverkusen this season.
From a player who was in the Championships last season, the 24-year-old pacy winger is on the cusp of winning a treble and making history with this Leverkusen side, drawing praise from Simon Rolfes.
“Nathan Tella came late in the transfer window in August and he needed time to adapt. He was always ambitious to develop himself and also to give good energy to the team and towards the team. Now he’s getting much more minutes than at the beginning of the season. That’s also a success story for himself and also for the team,” Leverkusen’s Simon Rolfes said in quotes revealed by TalkSport.
Tella can make history with Leverkusen in the Bundesliga today if they fail to lose to Augsburg. They will become the first team to go unbeaten in the competition since its inception in 1963.