Canadian Soccer Player Tani Oluwaseyi Villarreal Transfer Confirmed

The day I caught up with Tani Oluwaseyi, the Regina sky was impossibly blue, making the perfect backdrop for what would become one of our final Canadian interviews before his life-changing move to Spain.

“Sometimes I still wake up and wonder if this is really happening,” Oluwaseyi told me, his voice carrying the measured excitement of someone trying not to jinx their good fortune. “From playing on community fields in Mississauga to La Liga—it doesn’t seem real yet.”

But it is real. Villarreal CF, the storied Spanish club known as the “Yellow Submarine,” has officially signed the 25-year-old Canadian forward from Minnesota United FC, making him the second Canadian to join their ranks this season alongside national teammate Tajon Buchanan.

The transfer, reportedly worth €3.8 million with performance-based add-ons, marks another milestone in the remarkable acceleration of Canadian soccer talent into Europe’s top leagues. For context, just five years ago, only three Canadians were playing in Europe’s “Big Five” leagues. That number has now swelled to fifteen.

“It’s a testament to what’s happening back home,” Oluwaseyi explains, gesturing to the training ground where he was finishing up a pre-departure session with some local coaches. “The pathway is being built. Kids coming up now can see themselves in those jerseys because we’re actually there.”

Oluwaseyi’s journey doesn’t follow the typical elite soccer development narrative. Born in Nigeria, he moved to Canada at age five, where soccer became both an outlet and identity-builder in Mississauga’s diverse communities. Unlike many top prospects, he wasn’t fast-tracked through professional academies, instead developing through community clubs before earning a scholarship to St. John’s University in New York.

“That’s what makes his signing so significant,” says Jason deVos, former Canadian national team captain and current technical director at Canada Soccer. “Tani represents a different pathway. He proves you don’t need to be identified at twelve years old to make it professionally.”

Minnesota United took a chance on Oluwaseyi in the 2022 MLS SuperDraft, where his combination of physical presence, technical skill, and tactical intelligence quickly turned heads. In just 43 MLS appearances, he netted 14 goals and provided 8 assists—numbers that caught the attention of several European scouts.

Dr. Amanda Froese, sports psychologist who works with transitioning athletes, sees Oluwaseyi’s later-bloomer status as potentially beneficial. “Athletes who develop outside the pressure-cooker environment sometimes bring greater resilience and perspective when they do break through,” she notes. “They’ve had to fight harder for recognition, which builds character traits that serve them well during major transitions.”

The move to Villarreal represents both opportunity and challenge. The club, which finished sixth in La Liga last season, has a reputation for developing attacking talent, with alumni including Giuseppe Rossi, Santi Cazorla, and more recently, Nicolas Jackson and Samuel Chukwueze.

For Oluwaseyi, joining Villarreal means adapting to a completely different style of play. “MLS is physical, transition-based,” he explains. “La Liga demands more technical precision, more tactical awareness. You’re playing chess, not checkers.“

His preparation has been thorough—Spanish lessons three times weekly for the past two months, studying Villarreal matches, and connecting with Buchanan, who arrived at the club in July after his stint at Inter Milan.

“Tajon’s been incredible,” Oluwaseyi says. “He’s sending me housing options, restaurant recommendations, tips on the training culture. Having another Canadian there—someone who understands where you’re coming from—that’s invaluable.”

The significance of this move extends beyond one player’s career trajectory. According to data from Statistics Canada and Canada Soccer, youth soccer participation increased 18% following Canada’s qualification for the 2022 World Cup—their first appearance since 1986. Each high-profile transfer adds momentum to what many are calling a “golden generation” in Canadian soccer.

When I visited Mississauga’s Fallingbrook Middle School, where Oluwaseyi once played, physical education teacher Mariam Hassan showed me a wall where they track former students’ achievements. “We just added Tani’s Villarreal signing,” she said. “You should see how the kids react—especially the newcomer students. They see someone who looks like them, who came from where they came from, succeeding internationally.”

Oluwaseyi acknowledges this responsibility carefully. “I’m not just representing myself anymore. I represent my family, Mississauga, Canada, Nigeria—all these identities that shaped me. When kids see players like me and Tajon at clubs like Villarreal, it normalizes what once seemed impossible.”

Villarreal’s technical director Miguel Ángel Tena cited Oluwaseyi’s versatility, physical presence, and finishing ability as key factors in their decision to sign him. The club views him as both an immediate contributor and development project, with the potential to increase in value significantly over his four-year contract.

As our conversation winds down, Oluwaseyi grows reflective. “Ten years ago, I was watching La Liga on TV with my dad. Now Canadian players are there, contributing, changing perceptions. That’s bigger than any individual career.”

The statistics support his optimism: Canadian players logged over 22,000 minutes in Europe’s top five leagues last season—more than triple the minutes from five years earlier, according to tracking from Canada Soccer.

When Oluwaseyi boards his flight to Spain next week, he’ll carry with him not just personal ambitions, but the weight of a nation’s growing football aspirations. As Villarreal’s yellow submarine prepares to welcome its newest Canadian, the ripple effects will be felt on community pitches from coast to coast.