George Ilenikhena is currently operating on another level entirely, running roughshod over opposition defenders and turning games on their heads.
The 20-year-old forward put on an absolute masterclass on Friday evening, bagging a sensational brace of assists to mastermind a dominant 3-1 away victory for Al Ittihad over Al-Faisaly at the Al Majma’ah Sports City Stadium.
With the People’s Club holding a fragile one-goal advantage, the prodigy took absolute control of proceedings.
He created second and third goals to push the visitors into a commanding 3-0 lead before a late consolation strike from Théo Bongonda ruined the shutout.
The victory caps a sensational individual run for the explosive attacker: after finding the net in back-to-back games against Al Nassr and Al Fayha, he now boasts direct goal involvements in three consecutive fixtures, tallying three goals and two assists in that electric stretch.
That run increases the youngster’s tally to eight goal contributions across all competitions this season—six goals and two assists overall, including four goals and two assists in league play alongside two goals in the King’s Cup.
The match came alive in the 28th minute when Steven Bergwijn opened the scoring, finishing off a sharp delivery from Richard Ríos.
From that point on, Moroccan forward Youssef En-Nesyri stole the headlines by netting twice—yet it was Ilenikhena’s brilliant link-up play that unlocked the defense both times.
For the second goal in the 43rd minute, the youngster gathered the ball at the edge of the penalty box, dragging his defender deep into the danger zone.
Despite nearly losing control while attempting a sharp turn, he showed immense composure to slide a cut-back into a pocket of space for En-Nesyri, who trapped the ball before hammering a one-time strike into the back of the net.
The duo carved up the host defense again in the 59th minute. Set up inside the area, En-Nesyri pushed a quick pass to Ilenikhena.
The young forward stumbled under pressure and nearly lost his footing, but he recovered miraculously to roll the ball back to the Moroccan striker, who completed his double with another crisp first-time finish.
The Pride of Jeddah held total command until Théo Bongonda pulled one back for the hosts in the 87th minute. By then, the damage was done.
The Tigers comfortably saw out the remaining minutes, having withdrawn their teenage playmaker in the 63rd minute for Georginio Wijnaldum to preserve his energy after an exhausting afternoon.
Ilenikhena’s exciting form keeps sending a loud message to Nigeria head coach Eric Chelle. With the Super Eagles preparing for crucial Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau, this scintillating performance gives the national team staff every reason to grant the forward his long-awaited senior debut.
