Nigerian striker Gift Orban has joined Hellas Verona on loan with an option to buy coming from the German side TSG Hoffenheim.
Orban started his career in Nigeria before moving to Stabæk Fotball.
During a successful spell, he helped the Norwegian side earn promotion to the Eliteserien and won individual trophies, including the OBOS-ligaen top scorer of the season and the Young Player of the Season award.
In 2023, Orban moved to Gent and set several records, including scoring seven goals in five matches to quickly become the highest-scoring debutant in the Belgian Pro League.
Furthermore, Orban scored three goals in 205 seconds against Istanbul Başakşehir in the UEFA Conference League, claiming the fastest hat-trick in UEFA competition history.
A transfer to Olympique Lyonnais in January 2024 derailed his momentum.
He was unable to finish the season with Gent, just as he had not been able to finish the previous season with Stabæk.
The transfer to Lyon ultimately proved a misjudged one.
Orban had difficulty settling in with his new team in mid-season and did not get sufficient playing time in the second half of the campaign.
In 2024/2025, Orban was not considered in the head coach’s plans and participated in only three matches during the first half of the season.
Luckily for him, Orban succeeded in returning to consistent playing following his January move to Hoffenheim, which helped him catch the attention of Hellas Verona.
Our Gift Orban scout report will focus on the goalscoring traits that differentiate Gift Orban from other strikers and make him a potentially useful signing for I Gialloblù.
The analysis will also examine how Hellas Verona can better utilize Orban and leverage his strengths more effectively, taking into account his weaknesses and areas for improvement.
Gift Orban Style Of Play
Gift Orban is a striker who typically plays as either a main striker or a second striker, and has also been deployed on the wings and as an advanced playmaker on select occasions.
Orban’s physical characteristics and technical abilities allow him to play in most, if not all, attacking positions, but with more suitability for the striker role.
He is a clinical finisher and a player who strives to receive passes in goal-scoring positions by moving well without the ball and dealing extremely well with the chances he creates while in possession.
This means that Gift Orban can be considered a reliable player when he receives the ball inside the final third, as he knows exactly what to do in most situations, which makes him very useful and dangerous in that area.
Gift Orban Position In Hellas Verona Tactics
Gift Orban is excellent at taking penalties; he can finish with headers thanks to his impressive jump height, and he deals well with the passes he receives inside the box by creating goalscoring chances for himself even when marked, using efficient and quick dribbling skills.
His agility helps him lose markers and pave the way for himself to shoot or progress towards goal.
Therefore, Orban can also be a suitable and efficient left winger if Hellas Verona needs to fill that spot during the season.
For now, Paolo Zanetti has been using Gift Orban mainly as a striker alongside Giovane in a 3-5-2 formation.
This gives Gift Orban even more space and time to be dangerous in the Hellas Verona attack, since he is not the only striker for the opposition to focus on; he has a partner, too.
With a player like Gift Orban, who is very dynamic and agile in terms of movement with and without the ball, we can expect a lot more from him compared to what he has already shown during his initial participations with Hellas Verona.
Indeed, the following pizza chart does not show some promising numbers from an attacking perspective.
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