Former Nigerian forward Anthony Ujah had tipped Salim Fago Lawal to shine at Viktoria Plzen after completing a recent move to the former Czech league champions, SportPremi reports.
Lawal, 23, swapped Croatia for Czech when he left NK Istra to join Plzen in the Czech league this month, ending his three year stay at the club.
The former Nigerian U-20 striker signed a three-and-a-half year contract at Plzen and could make his debut against Karvina in the Czech league on Sunday, hoping to make an impact in his first outing for his new side.
The Super Eagles forward has enjoyed a remarkable rise in his career and only recently made his competitive debut for the national team at the recently concluded 2025 African Cup of Nations tournament in Morocco.
He joined as a like-for-like replacement for fellow Nigerian Rafiu Durosinmi, who left the Czech club earlier this month.
Ujah backs Lawal’s move to Czech
Former Nigerian international Ujah has expressed confidence in Lawal’s abilities and is backing him to enjoy a successful spell after his move to Czech.
The former Werder Bremen forward also highlighted the club-record fee as a statement of intent, but believes the youngster will live up to the price tag.
“Salim’s move is the right step for his development. The price associated with his transfer shows his worth,” Ujah revealed.
“The expectation is quite high—as I mentioned, the price tag makes a statement. So he will have to live up to those expectations, but I have no doubt Salim will make a difference at his new club.
He showed this at NK Istra. He had a difficult start, but he fought his way through and became one of the most important players in the squad”, he concluded.
Lawal will wear the number 70 shirt at Plzen and will be expected to play his first match in their weekend clash against Karvina.
