Mohammed Lawal the current representative of the Nigerian Super star goal-stoper Stanley Nwabali, has disclosed the major reasons behind the shock return of the goalkeeper to former club Chippa United ahead of the 2026/27 season.
Earlier in the year, the 30-year old Nigerian international decided to leave the South African club after the AFCON tournament in Morocco, only for him to return to the side last week.
It has been confirmed that the move ended a 5-month absence from competitive action, but his representative has now provided clarification on the absence and the decision to return to the Chippa United.
The representative of Nwabali, Mohammed Lawal told ESPN in an interview that the decision to walk away when he did was not just from Chippa United but also from football and was driven by overwhelming grief and a need to protect his mental health.
”It has been very difficult for Stanley,” Lawal opened up to ESPN. “People don’t always know what is going on with these players. They only see them on the field. They know them as footballers, but they don’t know that they are human beings too. Like everyone else, they go through life’s challenges.”
Lawal added: “After losing his parents, he became responsible for everything. There was a lot he needed to take care of. As a professional, he knew he had to keep playing, but it was affecting him and if he continued, he was going to destroy himself because when you’re not in the right mental state, it shows.”
Mohammed Lawal stated that the strain had become very evidential in Nwabali’s temperament, a factor that further fuelled the criticism he faced during Nigeria’s World Cup qualifying campaign and at the Nations Cup in Morocco.
He said: “If you look back, you’ll see the difference. Stanley used to be lively and always smiling. During the last AFCON and the World Cup qualifiers, he became unusually aggressive. He was shouting at teammates and confronting opponents. But that wasn’t the real Stanley.
“When he first started playing for Nigeria, everyone talked about how calm he was under pressure. Later, people thought he had become overconfident or aggressive. They didn’t know what was happening inside him.”
Lawal added: “Now Stanley is ready. He’s more than ready. He’s taken the time he needed, and the national team coach Eric Chelle also supported him throughout the process, communicating with him constantly.
“At Chippa, everyone knows him. They understand him. Instead of starting from the bottom in a new environment, he is returning to a place where people know who he is. That gives him the best chance to get back to the level he was at before,” Lawal concluded on the choice of returning to Chippa.
The Prodigal Son: Nwabali Returns to Chippa Utd – Agent Revealed
