George Ilenikhena: Fast-rising Al Ittihad star set to soar with Nigeria too

For some a new coach can bring uncertainty, for others it can mean an opportunity.

The arrival of Jens Wissing at Al Ittihad has undoubtedly been the latter for 20-year-old striker George Ilenikhena, who is one of the Roshn Saudi League’s hottest properties after the opening seven rounds of the season.

Four goals, including a match-winning brace against Al Nassr to inflict the defending champions’ only RSL defeat of 2026-27, one BSF Goal of the Week and two Man of the Match awards, have Ilenikhena’s name on everyone’s lips.

And that includes Nigeria’s national team coach, Eric Chelle, with Ilenikhena earning a debut call-up to the Super Eagles for their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualification kick-off against Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau.

The first of those potential bows takes place on Friday night, in Uyo.

It’s all a far cry from last season, when Ilenikhena couldn’t get into the Al Ittihad side after signing mid-season to help fill the void left by Karim Benzema. Indeed, he concluded the campaign with 88 minutes of RSL football under his belt.

Given Al Ittihad’s struggles - the defending champions would eventually finish fifth - the paucity was surprising for a player of his talent.

However, Ilenikhena’s form through the early rounds of this season won’t have been a surprise for Al Ittihad; there was a reason they invested significantly last February to sign him from AS Monaco.

This was a player who scored the winner as a 17-year-old for Royal Antwerp against Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League - the first-ever win for the Belgian side in European club football’s premier continental competition.

So much did he enjoy scoring against the Catalans, in fact, that Ilenikhena did it again shortly after signing for AS Monaco, this time a month beyond his 18th birthday in a famous 2-1 victory for the Principality side.

It wasn’t just any goal either: at 18 years and 34 days, Ilenikhena became the youngest UEFA Champions League goal scorer for the club, breaking the previous record set by a certain Kylian Mbappe.

So, still a teenager, Ilenikhena had scored UEFA Champions League winners against Barcelona, for two different clubs. That’s a fair claim to have on your CV.

Having also broken the record as the youngest goalscorer in Ligue 2 history during his time at Amiens, opening his account at just 16 years and 150 days, Ilenikhena was clearly a star on the rise. Thus, his was a name on the radar of every talent scout across Europe.

Reportedly frustrated by a lack of playing time in Ligue 1, Ilenikhena was understandably tempted by the opportunity at Al Ittihad. Still, he would’ve finished last season a little frustrated.

The appointment of Wissing in July, though, came at just the right moment, not least because the 38-year-old German has a proven track record of giving opportunities to youth.

He did it at Gamba Osaka and was rewarded with landing the 2025-26 AFC Champions League Two crown in May, ironically against Al Nassr, with an untested 18-year-old goalkeeper between the sticks.

As Al Ittihad headed for their summer training camp in Spain, the dispatches quickly began coming back about how impressive Ilenikhena had been, the player patently relishing the opportunity to impress a new manager.

While the on-song striker didn’t feature on the opening day of the season in the draw with Al Kholood, a brace a few days later in the King’s Cup was all Wissing needed to see.

From there, Ilenikhena hasn’t looked back. In Matchweek 2, he was the match winner against title contenders Al Qadsiah, scoring the only goal in a confidence-boosting 1-0 win. Al Ittihad, the visitors to the East Coast, had played nearly the entire second half with 10 men.

And having done it against Brendan Rodgers’ much-fancied side, and again against Al Nassr, the RSL has most definitely been put on notice.

But what makes Ilenikhena so formidable? While he only recently celebrated his 20th birthday, his physique is impressive. Ally that power with his pace and a lethal left foot, and he boasts all the attributes needed to be a dominant frontman.

The thing Ilenikhena has often lacked in the past is opportunity. But now, having been entrusted by Wissing, he is showing the world what he is capable of.

There’s somewhat of an irony in Ilenikhena breaking Mbappe’s scoring record, or almost single-handedly seeing off Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr.​

For, they are the two players he’s admitted he grew up idolising, that he would “very often” consume a litany of YouTube videos portraying the two global superstars' qualities.

Ilenikhena would most probably concede, also, that he’s a long way from their level yet. But, having broken the age barrier for most of his modest career to date, he now looks set for a breakout season at Al Ittihad.

And, by extension, Nigeria should prosper, too.