Official | St. Pauli conclude sale of Oladapo Afolayan to Blackburn Rovers | OneFootball

St. Pauli have officially sold English attacker Oladapo Afolayan to Blackburn Rovers. The 28-year-old sat on an expiring contract and was expected to depart Hamburg’s Kiezkicker this month. After some talk that the former Bolton man’s Bundesliga contract might be dissolved so as to facilitate a free transfer, St. Pauli have collected a small, undisclosed fee. Afolayan still maintains an estimated €2.5m market value. 

St. Pauli bid Afolayan a civil farewell

After plenty of controversy over some of Afolayan’s social media posts earlier this autumn, St. Pauli bid one of the player’s who certainly helped them gain promotion back to the German top flight an amicable enough farewell. Afolayan still hasn’t logged any league minutes since November, but made head coach Alexander Blessin’s matchday 17 and matchday 18 selections.

Statement on Afolayan’s departure

“FC St. Pauli would like to thank Dapo for his time with the club and his successes at the Millerntor,” a club statement on the FCSP website reads. “Since joining FC St. Pauli in January 2023, Afolayan has enriched the team with his pace, assertiveness, and goal-scoring threat. During his time in brown and white, he made a total of 93 appearances, scoring 16 goals and setting up seven more.

“A special milestone during his time with the club was the promotion to the Bundesliga,” the statement continues. “Afolayan made an important contribution to FC St. Pauli’s return to the top German diviosn after many years with important actions, goals, and assists. FC St. Pauli would like to thank Afolayan for his time with the club. We wish him all the best and every success in his future career with Blackburn Rovers and in his personal life.

“You will always be welcome at the Millerntor, Dapo!” the statement concludes. 

GGFN | Peter Weis