Nigerian left-back Godfrey Stephen has completed a move to Kazakh side Irtysh Pavlodar after a spell as a free agent, signing a contract that runs from 2026-02-06 to 2028-06-30. The defender joins the Premier Liga club on a free transfer from his previous status “Without Club,” with his current market value listed at €175k.
The deal installs the 25-year-old as Irtysh’s latest reinforcement on the left side of defence, adding height, mobility and top-flight experience from several European leagues. Stephen arrives without a transfer fee after his departure from Turkish outfit Gaziantep FK led to a period without a club, before Irtysh moved to secure his services for the upcoming campaigns.
Born in Jos and standing 1.85m tall, Stephen is a left-footed defender whose main position is left-back. His move to Kazakhstan extends a career spent entirely abroad since leaving Nigeria’s Gee-Lec Academy, underlining that he will again be playing outside his home country and now competing in the Premier Liga rather than in Nigerian domestic football. The switch also offers Irtysh a player who has already adapted to varied football cultures across Eastern Europe and beyond.
Stephen’s career path traces a steady circuit through emerging leagues. After leaving Gee-Lec Academy for Isloch Minsk Region in Belarus, he built his early reputation sufficiently to earn a transfer to Jagiellonia Bialystok in Poland’s top flight. A loan spell at Dinamo Tbilisi in Georgia followed, before a permanent move to Russian side Volga Uljanovsk and then a step into the Hungarian league with Diósgyőri VTK. Strong form there preceded his move to Turkey’s Gaziantep FK, after which contract expiry led to his “Without Club” status and subsequent free signing by Irtysh.
His market value graph reflects both promise and fluctuation. Valued as high as €500k during his breakthrough at Isloch, Stephen’s valuation declined through later spells in Poland and Georgia before recovering in Russia and Hungary, then peaking again at Diósgyőri VTK. A gradual drop during his time at Gaziantep FK and his period as a free agent has left him at €175k, a figure that makes this transfer a low-risk acquisition for Irtysh with potential upside if he re-establishes himself as a regular starter.
The move also continues a pattern of Stephen operating in leagues that can offer a platform for revival. Belarus, Poland, Georgia, Russia, Hungary and Türkiye have each shaped his development, and Kazakhstan now becomes the latest stop on a career defined by adaptability. For Irtysh, the signing addresses depth at left-back with a player who has already navigated multiple systems, styles and competitive levels.
For the player, the contract running from 2026-02-06 to 2028-06-30 provides stability after months without a club and a chance to rebuild momentum in a growing league. If Stephen can recapture the form that once made him one of the more highly rated young defenders in Eastern Europe, this free transfer could yet prove a turning point in his career and reputation on the international stage.
