Iheanacho, Osimhen, Arokodare lead Nigerian scorers in Europe

Politics Spice Special Features Education Sex & Relationship Interview Columns Opinion Advertise with us Iheanacho, Osimhen, Arokodare lead Nigerian scorers in Europe Sports October 28, 2026 12:34 am File photo: Kelechi Iheanacho

Nigerian forwards have made a flying start to the 2026/27 season across Europe, with Kelechi Iheanacho setting the pace alongside Victor Osimhen, Tolu Arokodare and Gift Orban. Ademola Lookman, a regular name on such lists in recent seasons, is not among the leading scorers this term, PETER AKINBO writes

Iheanacho has 16 goals and three assists in 12 appearances since joining Bursaspor as a free agent in the summer. He has scored in all 12 of those games, and the run continued after he struck again in the 4-2 win at Keçiörengücü on October 25. His goal came five minutes after the break, when he took the ball on the edge of the box, dribbled into space and fired in to make it 3-2.

The win was Bursaspor’s third straight league win and their fourth in five games, lifting them above Kayserispor to top the Turkish 1. Lig on 28 points.

The 30-year-old limped off late on, but coach Mustafa Er said the problem was minor and that the change was a precaution. He has already passed the 12 league goals he scored for Leicester City in the 2020/21 season, his previous best, and his form is expected to strengthen his claim for a Super Eagles place in next month’s AFCON qualifiers against Tanzania. Bursaspor host Bandırmaspor on Saturday.

Osimhen has nine goals and three assists in nine appearances, even though he missed around five weeks through injury. Since his return, he has picked up where he left off for the reigning Turkish champions, who are gunning for a fifth straight league title.

He scored his first Champions League goal of the season in the 4-2 win at Lille, Galatasaray’s first victory of their European campaign. It was a happy return to the club where he was named Player of The Season in 2019/20. Osimhen. Photo: X/@GalatasaraySK

He then scored both goals in the 2-1 derby win over Fenerbahçe on Monday in the 29th and 44th minutes. That put Galatasaray six points clear at the top of the Super Lig on 22 points, and Osimhen now has five goals in six appearances against Fenerbahçe without losing any of them. After the match, he said there was more to come from the team.

Arokodare has nine goals and three assists in 14 appearances for Ajax, where he is on a season-long loan from Wolves. He joined on July 29 after a difficult first season in England, and he has settled quickly in the Netherlands. Four of his goals have come in the Eredivisie and three in the Conference League qualifiers. File: Tolu Arokodare

He reached 100 career goals when he came off the bench against Atalanta on October 22 to break the deadlock in a 2-0 win. Three days later he scored the winner in the 2-1 victory at Sparta Rotterdam, slotting into the far corner just before half-time after a counter-attack led by Julian Brandt. He also hit the woodwork later in the game, and the win moved Ajax up to second in the table.

The 25-year-old has completed 90 minutes only three times in all competitions, and he has also had a recent spell of illness. Even so, he has scored in five of his last seven league games, and Ajax are reported to want to make his move permanent.

Cyriel Dessers (Panathinaikos) – nine goals

Dessers has had injury problems this season but still has nine goals in 14 appearances. Four of them came in the Conference League qualifiers, where he did not start any of the games, which shows how effective he has been in limited minutes. He followed that with a brace against Kairat in the league phase.

His latest goal was the winner in the 1-0 victory at Volos on October 25, which made it four games in a row with a goal. He finished calmly after a layoff from Tetteh.

The 31-year-old said afterwards that the team needed to be more clinical and finish games earlier, while also saying his partnership with his teammates was improving.

The former Rangers striker missed the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations through injury, and his form is now helping his push for a Super Eagles recall. Panathinaikos have made a strong start to the league season and were recently top of the table, two points clear of Olympiacos.

Orban has eight goals and four assists since joining Amedspor on loan from Hoffenheim in the summer, and he has played a big part in the newly promoted side’s strong start under manager Besnik Hasi. His goals include a brace against Kasımpaşa and a hat-trick against Başakşehir.

He also scored and set up another goal in the 3-2 win over Beşiktaş, and that strike won the Goal of The Month award for September in the Turkish Süper Lig.

His latest contribution came in the 2-1 win at Samsunspor on October 24, when he scored a 73rd-minute penalty and set up the other goal. That took Amedspor to 20 points from nine games and briefly to the top of the table, before Galatasaray’s derby win put them back in front.

Amedspor have not lost in any game where the 24-year-old has scored or set up a goal. He is level with Trabzonspor’s Mohamed Salah on eight league goals at the top of the scoring chart.

Durosinmi has seven goals, six of them in the Belgian league, since joining Genk from Pisa in the summer for a club-record €10.5m. He scored on his debut with a header from a Junya Ito cross and won the Man of The Match award, even though Genk lost that game.

He then scored a penalty in the 3-2 comeback win over Westerlo, and he found the net in four straight games, including against Royal Antwerp and Beveren.

His sixth league goal came in the 3-0 win over Kortrijk, and he added a seventh in the 2-0 Belgian Cup win over Virton on October 18. By then, he was leading the league’s scoring chart.

The 23-year-old has set himself a target of at least 20 goals this season and wants to challenge for the Golden Boot.

The form is a big change from his time in Italy, where he scored once in 12 Serie A games for Pisa. He had earlier scored 35 goals in 86 matches for Viktoria Plzeň, and Genk gave him a contract to 2030.

Adams has made a quick impact at Venezia, with four goals and one assist so far. His most valuable contribution was the winner in Venezia’s 1-0 upset of Napoli, one of Italy’s leading clubs.

That was his second Serie A goal of the season, after an earlier strike against Fiorentina in September. He has also done well in the Coppa Italia, where he has two goals and an assist in two appearances. The Super Eagles forward has played nine games in all competitions this season, and he will hope to keep his scoring going to help Venezia in the league.

Abraham Marcus (Estrela Amadora) – four goals

Marcus is enjoying what could become a breakthrough season in Portugal at Estrela Amadora. He has four goals and two assists in nine appearances, an impressive return for a player settling in at a new club.

All four of his goals have come in the league, where he has five goal contributions in eight appearances. He also has an assist in the Taça de Portugal. The 26-year-old spent several years on the fringes at Porto, and his form this season suggests he is ready to make a stronger impression in senior football.

Peter, who has been covering sports for PUNCH for close to two years, focuses on combat sports reporting, special features and human angle stories

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