New players can take a while to come out of their shells after making a move. Chidi Nwakali shows no signs of that.
The Nigerian midfielder, who joined on loan from Man City on Tuesday, has already ingratiated himself to the players’ WhatsApp group and looks to have bedded in early with his new team-mates.
Andrew Considine has seen plenty of loan signings come to Pittodrie and struggle to settle in but Nwakali has already promised to sing in front of his colleagues ahead of their friendly with Lokomotiv Tashkent in Dubai this afternoon.
Nwakali has said he felt the players took to him like a brother in his first training session and Considine believes he is already bonding with the rest of the squad.
He said: “I’ve seen a few loan signings over the years and they stay in a shell and don’t get involved. But him and Dom who have come in have been straight in about it.
“He’s pretty lively to be fair – we have a group WhatsApp and he was entertaining on that and the ice has been broken. He’s definitely a character.
“He says he’s going to sing on Sunday so we’re still waiting. He produced a dance video on the WhatsApp so it should be fun. Don’t worry he had clothes on! He doesn’t know about my video yet, but I’m sure he will.”
The 21-year-old spent the first half of the season on loan at Norwegian side Sogndal and comes to Aberdeen with ambitions of making Nigeria’s World Cup squad in Russia this summer.
The fact a club of the stature of Manchester City is looking to the Dons to help them out by taking loan players is an indication of the club’s progress, according to Considine.
He said: “The fact we’ve done quite well over the last three or four years puts us on a pedestal and teams down south look at Aberdeen and think it’s worth loaning players.
“It’s great that Man City are prepared to loan us a player. He looks the part in training.
“He’s young, he’s only 21 and he will be a great addition to the squad.
“I’m sure he’ll get a good part of the game on Sunday in front of a couple of hundred fans. I’m sure he’ll know what is expected of him.
“He’s had a couple of years in Norway and I’m sure it’s similar to Scottish football.
“The fact he’s at Manchester City says a lot about him.”