Northampton Town Sign Nathan Opoku from Leicester City

Northampton Town have moved to sharpen their attack with the signing of striker Nathan Opoku from Leicester City for an undisclosed fee.

The 25-year-old Ghanaian has agreed a three-year contract at Sixfields, a significant commitment from the Cobblers to a forward whose route into the English game has been anything but conventional.

Opoku joined Leicester in 2023 after a prolific spell at Syracuse University in the United States, swapping college soccer for a Premier League club’s pathway. Leicester immediately sent him to their Belgian sister side OH Leuven, where he hit five goals and began to adapt to the demands of European football.

His next step came in League Two with Newport County last season. Opoku scored six times in 30 league appearances and finished as the Exiles’ top scorer, a notable return in a struggling side and a clear sign he can handle the physical grind of the division.

“He has had a different journey to most players but that has helped him gain a good breadth of knowledge and experience and he is an excellent age,” Hogg told the club’s website. “He has spent the last three years at Leicester City and enjoyed loan spells both in Europe and last season in League Two so he knows the level and he has scored goals at this level.

“We have tracked Nathan for a while so we know all about him, we have done our homework and we know he is hardworking, has an excellent attitude and is a good person, he is a good character and a good player.”

Northampton now hand him a platform of his own, not another loan, not another short-term stop. The next step in Opoku’s unusual football journey will be written in Cobblers colours.