Stephen Odey has found a new home. The 28-year-old Nigerian striker has completed a free transfer to Debreceni VSC, Hungary’s most decorated club, ending nearly two months without a team since leaving Randers FC.
From Lagos to Europe: Odey’s Journey
Odey’s story is one of persistence across multiple countries and leagues. He started out at MFM FC in the Nigerian Professional Football League, where he became the club’s all-time top scorer. His performances caught the attention of Swiss club FC Zürich, who signed him in October 2017 for a reported $350,000. He won the Swiss Cup with Zürich in 2017/18 before earning a big move to Belgian heavyweights KRC Genk on a five-year contract in June 2019.
The Genk spell didn’t produce the goals everyone expected. He managed just one strike in 11 league outings for the Belgian side before being sent out on loan to French Ligue 2 club Amiens SC, where he scored six goals in 28 matches. A loan move to Danish club Randers in August 2021 changed everything.
Odey scored five goals in his first seven games for Randers, which was enough to trigger the club’s purchase option and secure his permanent signing in November 2021, a deal described as the most expensive transfer in Randers’ history at the time. He went on to make 129 appearances for Randers in total, scoring 28 goals across loan and permanent stints.
Why Debreceni VSC Makes Sense
For Odey, this isn’t a step sideways. It’s a step forward after a standstill. He’s 28, right in the prime years for a striker, and he needs minutes. Debreceni VSC compete in Hungary’s top flight and take their ambitions seriously. Their squad features experienced internationals, and their manager Sergio Navarro is building something with clear structure.
Odey will wear the number 90 shirt, and he joins a squad that includes the iconic Balázs Dzsudzsák as captain. The environment is competitive but structured, exactly what a striker who’s been sitting idle since January needs.
Punters following Odey’s progress in Hungary can back him in goalscorer markets through Bet9ja’s welcome bonus, which offers up to ₦100,000 on first deposit, giving Nigerian fans an affordable way to follow their players in the lesser-covered European leagues.
Analysis: What This Transfer Means for Nigerian Football
Odey’s move to Hungary won’t make front pages in London or Madrid. But for Nigerian football, it matters. He remains one of a generation of players who rose through the NPFL, earned moves abroad, and have kept Nigerian football on the map across multiple European leagues simultaneously.
His career has taken him through Switzerland, Belgium, France, Denmark, and now Hungary. That’s five European countries. Every stop has added something, even the difficult Genk period, where he struggled for first-team football, taught him resilience.
The big question now is whether Hungary can reignite the Odey who scored freely at MFM and threatened regularly for Randers in his early spell there. He has three Super Eagles caps, earned back in 2017 and 2018. A strong run at Debreceni VSC won’t automatically earn him an Eagles recall, not with the competition ahead of him, but it keeps the dream alive. Nigerian football needs its players to be active and productive. Odey being on the pitch is better than Odey on the market.
What Comes Next
Odey steps into a Hungarian league campaign that’s already well underway, with Debreceni VSC looking to consolidate their position in the top flight. He’ll need time to settle, learn the patterns of a new squad, and build chemistry with his teammates. But he’s done this before, multiple times, in multiple languages.
A striker with 83 career goals across six countries doesn’t forget how to score. Debreceni VSC are betting on that. And with a free transfer costing them only wages, the risk is low, and the potential upside is real.
Odey’s next chapter starts now.
📌 Did You Know?
- Stephen Odey is the all-time top scorer in MFM FC’s history in the Nigerian Professional Football League, a record he set during the 2015/16 and 2016/17 seasons in Lagos.
- When Randers FC signed Odey permanently from KRC Genk in November 2021, the deal was officially recognized as the most expensive transfer in the club’s history.
- Odey was part of the winning team in the GTBank-Lagos State Principals Cup, where he served as captain of Dairy Farm Senior Secondary School, Agege, and was named to the competition’s 13-man all-star team.
- He won the Swiss Cup with FC Zürich in the 2017/18 season, just his first campaign with the club, giving him a European domestic trophy before the age of 21.
- Debreceni VSC have won the Hungarian top-flight title seven times, making them one of the most decorated clubs in the country’s football history, though they haven’t won it since their last title run.
- Odey has now played professional football in six different countries: Nigeria, Switzerland, Belgium, France, Denmark, and Hungary, a rare geographic spread for a Nigerian forward of his generation.
- His three Super Eagles caps all came in 2017 and 2018 under coach Gernot Rohr, with his international debut coming in a 1-0 friendly defeat against Benin on 13 August 2017.

