Premier League newcomers, Brentford, have announced the signing of Nigerian international, Frank Onyeka, from Danish side FC Midtjylland.
The 23-year-old, who has passed a medical and received a work permit, inked a five-year contract to become the Bees’ first signing this summer.
He played in the first and second leg of Midtjylland’s Champions League games against Liverpool last season. The matches end 3-1 on aggregate following a 1-1 draw in Denmark and a 2-0 defeat at Anfield.
Brentford, in a statement on its website, said: “A work permit for the 23-year-old was received at the weekend and he has completed a medical. Frank will join from FC Midtjylland, where Brentford owner Matthew Benham has the majority shareholding, for an undisclosed fee and has signed a five-year contract.
“He arrived in the UK yesterday [Monday], July 19, and will now undergo a period of quarantine before joining the squad for training.
“Frank has spent his entire professional career with FCM, as they are known, and has been a regular for them in the Danish Superliga for most of the past four seasons. He arrived in Denmark as an 18-year-old from FC Ebedei, a Nigerian club with links to FCM. He progressed to the first team and made his breakthrough in the 2017-18 season.
“Frank was part of the FCM side that won the Superliga in 2017-18, playing 15 games. He helped them win the title again in 2019/20 and the Danish Cup in 2019. Frank played in the Uefa Champions League and Uefa Europa League for FCM, and leaves Denmark having made 123 appearances and scored 17 goals.”
Thomas Frank has called the player’s signing a positive development for his team, adding that the Nigerian international is a strong addition to the Brentford squad.
“Frank plays as an eight in our system. He is very good at getting from box to box and will be valuable to us when we don’t have the ball. He has come from the Danish league and was one of the best midfield players in that league; we think he has the potential to develop further.
“All the coaches here are looking forward to working with Frank and pushing him to a higher level.”
Last season, Onyeka was selected for the Nigeria friendly against Algeria and made his debut in that match.
Brentford will face Arsenal in their league opener on August 13.
