Quick Facts
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Biography
Henry Chukwuemeka Onyekuru (born 5 June 1997) is a Nigerian professional footballer who plays as a winger for Galatasaray, on loan from AS Monaco, and the Nigeria national team.
Club career
Eupen
Onyekuru began his football career with the Aspire Academy in 2010, and graduated in 2015 joining their partner club, K.A.S. Eupen. He made his debut for Eupen on 5 September 2015 in a 2–2 tie against K.F.C. Dessel Sport in the Belgian Second Division. Onyekuru helped the team get promoted to the Belgian First Division A in his debut season, and made his professional debut in a 3–0 loss on 30 July 2016 against S.V. Zulte Waregem. After a successful season in the Belgium first division, Onyekuru finished as one of the top scorers in the league, catching the attention of various larger teams in Europe. He finished the 2016–17 season as joint top-scorer with 22 goals, but the trophy was handed to Łukasz Teodorczyk as he scored more away goals than Onyekuru.
Everton
On 30 June 2017, Onyekuru joined Everton for £7 million and was immediately sent on loan to Anderlecht. Onyekuru had been handed the number 9 jersey at Anderlecht for the 2017–18 campaign.
Having scored 10 goals in 28 matches for Anderlecht, Onyekuru suffered a knee ligament injury in December which would require surgery. Anderlecht announced surgery would be necessary and that he would be out of action "for several months". In January 2018, it was reported that Onyekuru would return to Anderlecht after rehabilitation and full recovery.
Loan to Galatasaray
In July 2018, Onyekuru joined Galatasaray on a season-long loan. The loan fee paid to Everton was reported as £700,000. On 20 May 2019, Onyekuru was on the scoresheet for Galatasaray as they defeated title challengers İstanbul Başakşehir 2–1 to secure the Süper Lig championship for the second straight season. The victory also meant that Galatasaray secured the domestic double having defeated Akhisar Belediyespor in the Turkish Cup final the week prior. In his lone season with Galatasaray, Onyekuru scored 16 goals in 44 appearances across all competitions.
Monaco
Having failed to ever secure a work permit in the UK, Onyekuru joined AS Monaco on a permanent transfer on 12 August 2019. The fee was undisclosed (rumoured to be between £12-£15 million) and Onyekuru signed a five-year deal with the Ligue 1 club.
International career
Onyekuru was called up for the Super Eagles camp in May 2017. He made his senior debut for Nigeria in a 3–0 friendly win over Togo on 1 June 2017.
After a strong 2018–19 club season with Galatasaray, Onyekuru was included in Nigeria's final 23-man squad for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt. He played for 12 minutes at the finals, coming on as a late substitute in their 1–2 semi-final defeat to eventual champions Algeria.
Onyekuru was invited by the national coach as part of the squad to face Ukraine in an international friendly on the 10 of September 2019.
Career statistics
- As of 21 September 2019
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Eupen | 2015–16 | Belgian Second Division | 19 | 6 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 19 | 6 | |||
| 2016–17 | Belgian First Division A | 38 | 22 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | 41 | 24 | ||||
| Total | 57 | 28 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | 60 | 30 | |||||
| Everton | 2017–18 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Anderlecht (loan) | 2017–18 | Belgian First Division A | 19 | 9 | 2 | 1 | — | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 28 | 10 | |
| Galatasaray (loan) | 2018–19 | Süper Lig | 31 | 14 | 6 | 2 | — | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 44 | 16 | |
| Monaco | 2019–20 | Ligue 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Career total | 111 | 51 | 11 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 136 | 56 | ||
International
- As of matches played on 16 July 2019
| Nigeria national team | ||
| Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 1 | 0 |
| 2018 | 5 | 0 |
| 2019 | 5 | 1 |
| Total | 11 | 1 |
International goals
- Scores and results list Nigeria's goal tally first.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 22 March 2019 | Stephen Keshi Stadium, Asaba, Nigeria |  Seychelles | 2–1 | 3–1 | 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
Honours
Galatasaray
- Süper Lig: 2018–19
- Türkiye Kupası:2018–19