Nigeria’s Sani Suleman becomes Europe’s hottest teenage winger

RB Leipzig has landed one of Europe’s most coveted teenage attackers, signing Nigerian sensation Sani Suleman from Slovak top-flight side AS Trenčín on a five-year deal.

The 19-year-old, who will don the number 18 shirt, is now officially part of the Bundesliga club’s long-term blueprint, with a contract running until 30 June 2031.

The Leipzig announcement on Tuesday hailed Suleman as “another young attacking option for the future,” underlining the club’s continued focus on nurturing elite talent.

“RB Leipzig have secured another young attacking option for the future, with Suleman Sani completing a move from Slovak top-flight side AS Trenčín,” the club statement read.

“The 19-year-old winger has signed a contract valid until 30th June 2031 and will wear the number 18 shirt.”

The deal, reported by Sky Germany, is worth slightly over €5 million, rising to around €6 million with performance-related bonuses.

The transfer also finally clears up a long-standing mix-up: the player’s first name is correctly spelt Suleman, not Suleiman, a detail misreported across forums and even by his former club.

“Until now, his name has been misspelt with an ‘i’ in various forums and even by his former club, AS Trenčín. The correct spelling, according to the player’s camp, is Suleman Sani, making it an unusual but noteworthy correction,” Sky Sports reporter Philipp Hinze wrote on X.

Suleman’s move caps a ferocious European chase. RB Leipzig and Bayer Leverkusen emerged as frontrunners in recent weeks, beating off interest from Tottenham Hotspur, while Chelsea, PSG, Brentford, Rangers, and clubs in Saudi Arabia and Belgium had all reportedly been in contact over the past months.

The young Nigerian winger’s meteoric rise is backed by impressive stats. In November 2025, he was ranked sixth globally among U-20 players for completed dribbles and progressive carries by the CIES Football Observatory, trailing only elite names such as Lamine Yamal. Earlier, in October, he led the U-21 rankings worldwide for most creative last-third passes per 90 minutes, averaging 2.52 per game.

Suleman’s story began at Akwa United, where he clinched the 2024 NPFL Rookie of the Season Award, scoring 11 goals and providing five assists in just 15 matches. His talent shone internationally with Nigeria’s U-20 team at the 2025 FIFA World Cup in Chile before he became a key attacking figure at AS Trenčín.

READ ALSO: AFCON 2025: Osimhen hails “tactical” ‘Eric Chelle ahead of semi-final against Morocco

As Leipzig’s first winter signing, Suleman is expected to be fully integrated into the club’s long-term plan, continuing a proven strategy of recruiting elite young talent with the potential to dominate at the top levels of European football.

At 19, Sani Suleman is now on the brink of writing the next chapter in African football history, joining a growing list of Nigerian prodigies making Europe sit up and take notice.