Nigeria international midfielder Kingsley Michael is awaiting approval from the Tunisian Football Federation before his move to Italian club US Vibonese Calcio in Serie D can be completed.
The transfer was announced during the October international break, however Michael has yet to receive his International Transfer Certificate (ITC), which has prevented him from making his debut.
Previously winner of the 2015 U-17 World Cup with Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets, the 26 year old started his career at the Bologna academy and had loan stints at Perugia, Cremonese, Reggina and Austrian side SV Ried.
Michael made his senior debut for the Super Eagles in September 2021 during a World Cup qualifier a 2-1 win over Cape Verde after featuring in the U20 and Olympic squads.
Despite being second in Serie D’s Group I with US Vibonese (15 points after eight matches), he may need to wait until the paperwork is cleared before making his debut.
Editorial
In football, the biggest battles are often not waged on the pitch but in the margins paperwork, clearances, registration deadlines. For Kingsley Michael, the move to US Vibonese should have been a fresh chapter instead it has begun with delay and uncertainty.
Michael’s career has been rich with promise a World Cup winner at U-17 level, a youth graduate from Bologna, experience across Italy, Austria and the Super Eagles. Yet here he stands, on the brink of a new club, unable to take the field until a formality is resolved. That formality, the International Transfer Certificate, is minor in many respects but in his moment, it looms large.
The risk with delays like this is not just inactivity it is erosion of rhythm, confidence and momentum. A player in his mid-twenties needs minutes he needs to feel the pulse of competition. For Michael, waiting means missing chances—to integrate, to stake a claim, to reshape his narrative.
For US Vibonese, the wait also signals caution. They have acquired a player with pedigree but the delay underscores the fragility of transitions in modern football. Clubs, agents, federations all bristle at red tape. Yet until it is cleared, the player remains in limbo.
What Michael now must do is maintain readiness, maintain focus, and ensure the pause becomes a prelude, not a pitfall. The minutes lost now could become the urgency later. The clearer signal will be when he finally steps on the turf, not when the deal is announced. In the interim, the waiting game is the test.
Did You Know?
f Michael was part of the Nigeria Golden Eaglets squad that won the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup.
Though just 26, he has already played in multiple countries Italy (Bologna youth, various loans) and Austria (SV Ried) before the move to Tunisia and now Italy again.
His senior Super Eagles debut came under coach Gernot Rohr in a World Cup qualifier versus Cape Verde in September 2021, in which he played the full 90 minutes.
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US Vibonese currently sit second in Serie D Group I after eight matches, though Michael has yet to feature due to the outstanding paperwork.
The delay in Michael’s transfer demonstrates how moves can be delayed by federations’ approvals—even when clubs and players have agreed terms.
