The name Junior Udeme Pius is slowly becoming a household name in Portugal owing to his fine performance for Pacos Ferreira since his move to the club in the summer from top division side Tondela.
Junior who was out for eight months took a step down to the second division to help recover his confidence via playing time and he has surely achieve his aim since joining Pacos.
He has led the defence of Pacos to 8 clean sheet in ten games. A form which made Owngoalnigeria.com to sort the assistance of a Portuguese based Nigerian scout Shola Michael for his assessment of the 22 year old.
Defending – His tackles are usually well timed although his strength lies more in his ability to read and intercept plays as well as in the air, mainly due to his height as he stands at an impressive height of over six feet fall.
Passing Ability – That’s arguably his strength maybe because he started out as a defensive midfielder. He passes very well with both feet and also link up play brilliantly with long balls.
Pace – Not the quickest but at the same time he isn’t entirely slow. For a man of his height his pace is above average and his ability to spot and nullify threats means he is hardly in a position where pace can be used against him.
Weak Point – He is sometimes too confident on the ball and if he plays in tight spaces he could cost his team. He also need to work on being effective at the opponent’s end because for a man of his height he should be a threat from set piece situations.
Overall – A solid defender who can no doubt survive in the top division but still has to work on some rough edges if he wants to become a top defender. He is only 22 and I must say he is on the right path.
