Joseph Arumala is 21 years old. He has never played an NPFL season before this one. And with two games left, he is leading the Golden Boot race — one goal ahead of two players who have already won it.
Ikorodu City winger Joseph Arumala netted his 12th goal of the 2025/26 NPFL season in the 29th minute of a 3-0 home win over Kano Pillars at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena in Onikan, Lagos. The finish, set up by Abayomi Ayodeji, was composed and clinical — the kind of goal that has made Arumala one of the stories of the Nigerian domestic season.
That strike moved him one clear of Enugu Rangers striker Godwin Obaje and Abia Warriors forward Chukwuemeka Obioma, both on 11. Four other players sit just two behind on 10. The race is wide open with the season’s final two matchdays still to play.
A Record Already in Sight
Arumala’s 12 goals in 30 appearances have done more than put him atop a scoring chart. They have also taken him to the edge of Ikorodu City history. Shola Adelani holds the club’s single-season NPFL scoring record on 12 goals before he left for an overseas move.
One more goal would give Arumala outright ownership of that record — and with two games remaining, the opportunity is firmly in his hands. For a winger in his debut top-flight campaign, this is an extraordinary position to be in. Fans following his pursuit of the record can back Ikorodu City’s final run-in using the Bet9ja YOHAIG promo code before the remaining matchdays.
The Man Himself Is Unbothered
Press Arumala on the Golden Boot and he deflects every time. His answers are consistent, calm, and refreshingly team-first for a 21-year-old in the spotlight.
“I just want to enjoy the remaining games of the season. I am not targeting any number of goals but I just want to help my team do well so that we can finish the season very well. For me, it is a game at a time.”
Asked whether the race worried him, he was equally measured.
“In football anything can happen, so it is still an open race. I am not under pressure at all. I just want to keep things going and help my team. I will be happy to see my team finish in the top-three because that will be a big achievement.”
What a Top-Three Finish Would Mean
Ikorodu City sit third in the NPFL table on 55 points — three behind leaders Rivers United and two adrift of second-placed Enugu Rangers. First and second earn a place in the CAF Champions League. Third means the CAF Confederation Cup.
Either way, Ikorodu City are heading to the African continent for the first time. For a club only in their second NPFL season, that achievement would eclipse any individual award. Arumala knows that — and it explains why his team’s finish means more to him than his personal tally. Those wanting to stake on Ikorodu City’s final push for a top-two spot can find updated markets at bet9japromotioncode.com.ng.
⚽ NPFL Golden Boot Standings — Top 7
| Player | Club | Goals | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joseph Arumala | Ikorodu City | 12 | 2 |
| Godwin Obaje | Enugu Rangers | 11 | 2 |
| Chukwuemeka Obioma | Abia Warriors | 11 | 0 |
| Victor Mbaoma | Remo Stars | 10 | 1 |
| Daddy Abdulrahman | El-Kanemi Warriors | 10 | 2 |
| Uche Collins | Katsina United | 10 | 0 |
| Chidera Michael | Enyimba | 10 | 0 |
The Chasers and Their Threats
Godwin Obaje won the NPFL Golden Boot in 2016 with 18 goals. He knows how to finish a season. Chukwuemeka Obioma won the award in 2022/23. Both men have done this before, under pressure, in the final weeks of a campaign.
Victor Mbaoma is arguably the most efficient scorer in the group — 10 goals from just 23 appearances after missing the early season with bruised ribs. Uche Collins of Katsina United is the only man in the top seven to have scored a hat-trick this season. Daddy Abdulrahman has made the most appearances among the leading scorers and has 12 direct goal involvements across his 10 goals and two assists. Any of them could still win it. Supporters tracking the final week drama can get started with this Bet9ja sign-up bonus for new users ahead of the season’s final matchday.
Why Arumala’s Story Is Special
The NPFL Golden Boot race, most years, is a contest between experienced campaigners. Players with multiple seasons in the league, with the benefit of knowing how to pace a season over 38 matchdays. Arumala has none of that background. He joined Ikorodu City in August 2025 and walked straight into the league’s most competitive scoring race in years.
He is a former Golden Eaglets player — Nigeria’s U-17 national team — who transferred that youth level quality into consistent senior production from his very first professional month. At 21, leading the scoring charts above proven veterans like Obaje and Obioma is not a small thing. Whatever happens in the final two games, this season has already established Joseph Arumala as one of the most exciting young forwards in Nigerian domestic football.
📌 Did You Know?
- Ikorodu City FC were only promoted to the NPFL for the first time in 2024, making the 2025/26 season just their second in the Nigerian top flight. The club are based in Ikorodu, Lagos State, and their rise from the lower divisions has been one of the more remarkable development stories in Nigerian club football in recent years.
- Shola Adelani, who holds Ikorodu City’s single-season NPFL scoring record on 12 goals, left for a move abroad shortly after setting that mark. If Arumala scores once more in the final two games, he will become the most prolific scorer in the club’s short NPFL history — in his very first season with them.
- Godwin Obaje, Arumala’s closest challenger, won the NPFL Golden Boot in the 2015/16 season with Lokoja FC with 18 goals — one of the highest single-season tallies in modern Nigerian football. Obaje has gone on to represent Enugu Rangers and remains one of the most reliable finishers the domestic league has produced in the past decade.
- Chukwuemeka Obioma won the NPFL Golden Boot in the 2022/23 season. He is the only player in the current top-seven scoring list who has not yet registered a single assist in 26 appearances — all of his direct goal contributions have come from his own finishing rather than build-up play.
- Victor Mbaoma, on 10 goals in just 23 appearances, is the most efficient scorer in the Golden Boot race by appearances ratio. He missed the opening weeks of the 2025/26 season with bruised ribs and is widely considered one of the most clinical forwards the NPFL has produced, having previously played for Enyimba and Rwandan club APR FC.
- The Mobolaji Johnson Arena in Onikan, Lagos, where Arumala scored his 12th goal against Kano Pillars, is one of the oldest football grounds in Nigeria. Built in the colonial era and renovated multiple times, it has hosted some of the most significant matches in Lagos football history and remains a central venue for top-flight games in the state.
- Uche Collins of Katsina United is the only player among the top seven scorers to have scored a hat-trick during the 2025/26 NPFL season. That distinction means that in a single game, Collins has shown he can close a two-goal gap on any of the leaders above him — making him the wildcard threat in the race’s final stretch.
