In 2013 at the FIFA U17 World Cup, Kelechi Iheanacho caught the
attention of the world.

Fourteen days before kick off he clocked 17 and the young
forward celebrated his new age by inspiring Nigeria’s Golden
Eaglets to a fourth world cup triumph and was voted player of the
tournament.

As far as his trade of goalscoring is concerned, Iheanacho
scored six of Nigeria’s 26 goals, 4.3 percent of the team’s
total.

He got tongues wagging as several scouts tipped him to cast as
big a shadow as Kanu Nwankwo did after 1993.

Not so long after, the Daniel Bryan-styled celebration appeared
in Manchester, as the teen sensation was prised from Taye Academy
in Lagos by Premier League side Manchester City to the club’s Elite
Development Squad.

Three years after his success at the Mohammed Bin Zayed Stadium
in Abu Dhabi, Iheanacho made his first competitive senior team
debut for Manchester City on home ground.

That season he went to make 26 league appearances and scored 8
goals. In total he made 35 appearances in all competitions, scoring
14 goals.

He was certainly on the rise, unlocking his potentials under
Manager Manuel Pellegrini.

But a change of Management at the club saw Pep Guardiola
appointed to take the reigns in what would become Iheanacho’s last
season.

With limited playing opportunities as he dropped further down
the pecking order to third choice striker behind Sergio Aguero and
Gabriel Jesus, the young Nigerian took a rain check and his
services to Leicester.

The transition didn’t quite work out well for the Forward and he
soon found life in the East Midlands as tough.

A complete and drastic switch of the style of play exposed what
are inherently his weakness; pace and precision.

Iheanacho was on the precipice at the King Power Stadium and
would have been cut loose two years into his five-year deal but
suitors weren’t willing to share in his hefty £60,000 per week
wage.

As he struggled in Leicester, his form took a hit and even his
national team position went from threatened to outright
omission.

From making three appearances at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, his
first major senior international competition, Iheanacho was dropped
by the Super Eagles Coach Gernot Rohr for the campaign in the
African Nations Cup in 2019.

He was the only player from the 2013 U17s that had enjoyed a
smooth transition through the youth national teams.

Iheanacho had certainly hit the nadir and was almost blown into
football oblivion.

But Leicester needing a new direction and purpose, four managers
after the sacking of Claudio Ranieri in 2017, hired former
Liverpool Boss Brendan Rodgers from Celtic in February of 2019.

In Rodgers’ first full season in charge, Iheanacho did not play
a competitive game until September in the League Cup. His first
Premier League appearance came in December against Everton.

Introduced in the final quarter of the match, he registered his
first EPL goal after 24 league matches, dating back to September
2018.

That marked the beginning of a what became a gradual revival of
his form and as confidence crept back into the player so it did in
his teammates and Coaches.

Before the suspension of all football activities in March due to
the Coronavirus outbreak, Iheanacho was performing much like his
old self.

He had notched 8 goals in all competitions, meager, but an
improvement from his previous season where he scored only 2 goals
across all competitions – in 35 matches.

In his last season at Manchester City the forward scored four
goals creating 3 assists in 20 league appearances.

He managed 22 shots, only 7 were on target averaging 32 percent
in shooting accuracy – he also missed three big chances.

Last season, he registered 36 shots, 20 were on target and his
accuracy improved to 56 percent.

The improvements show Rogers has had some measurable impact in
the abilities of the Nigerian and obviously more than any other
Manager since Pellegrini.

His U17 Coach, Manu Garba believes the Forward was derailed,
possibly by bad influences off the pitch.

In an interview with The Athletic as quoted by Kunle Fayiga
[Goal], Manu said:

I’m still wondering how Kelechi didn’t emerge as one of the
best in England. He might have fallen under bad influences from
friends, coming from a poor background to an improved
status.

That can become a distraction when you are so young, but I
have seen the old Iheanacho at Leicester.

Iheanacho is an asset to any club if the manager understands
him, helps him and works on his off-the-ball contribution.

He will be useful coming behind the main striker because his
final passes are inch-perfect and he can shoot from distance. He
will be a good player for Leicester.

At this point Kelechi Iheanacho isn’t delivering on the promise
many saw in 2013 and at 23 he might not get many chances at the
very top if he doesn’t switch to top gear.

He has been linked with a move to Turkish side Fenerbahce and
according to Tom Leach [leicestermercury], Rodgers is keen on signing
Ousmane Edouard from Celtic this summer as the Nigerian’s
replacement.

Whether or not Iheanacho has reached his full potentials is
entirely up to the player to decide, but he is in a race against
time.

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