Nigerian international Stephen Eze became a prized pick for Jamshedpur FC on Thursday .

The 26-year-old is the sixth foreign signing and the second foreign centre-back along with the recently announced Peter Hartley.

Eze is a current international with the Nigerian national team having represented them 13 times since his debut in 2016. In May 2018, he was named in Nigeria’s preliminary 30-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia but did not make it to the final 23. His Super Eagles side finished runner-up in the African Nations Championship in 2018 with Eze playing all six games.

The defender has been playing with Lokomotiv Plovidiv in the Bulgarian top division for the past three seasons and comes off the back of a runner-up finish in the 2019-20 season. He won the Bulgarian Cup in the 2018-19 season with Lokomotiv and represented them in the Europa League 2019-20 in four games.

The right-footed Eze is an imposing 6’6” in stature. He is excellent in positioning and anticipation and calm while distributing the ball. His dominance in the air in defending as well as in the attacking third will be an asset for Jamshedpur. He is of high quality in attacking set pieces, which reflects in his 3 goals last season for Lokomotiv.

Eze was thrilled with the move to Jamshedpur FC and said: “ I have been following the ISL closely and it is one of the most exciting and competitive leagues. I have seen the passion of fans of Jamshedpur, which is why I’m excited and can’t wait to get started. My aim is simple, and it is to win. There have been some exciting signings by the club in the past few weeks and I look forward to working with my teammates and ending the season with silverware.”

He also spoke of Owen Coyle influence on convincing him to join Jamshedpur. “ Owen Coyle is a top football manager who I have followed since my childhood when he was with Burnley, Bolton Wanderers and Wigan Athletic in the English Premier League. I looked up to him and was elated at the prospects when this opportunity was presented. He is clear in his vision and that made my decision easy,” Eze said.

Lauding the defender, delighted head coach Owen Coyle said: “ Eze will be crucial in making our defence mean and miserly. His towering personality and unyielding attitude towards the game could make him one of the best centre-backs in the ISL.”

Eze will be donning jersey number 66 for the upcoming ISL season.