Henry Onyekuru’s Everton career was scuppered before it began, he’s now had six clubs in six years

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Everton had high hopes for Henry Onyekuru, but the winger has failed to live up to his potential in recent years.

The summer of 2017 offered so much promise for Everton, but proved to be full of mistakes.

The signing of Jordan Pickford was a major success, but Sandro Ramirez flopped, and Davy Klaassen was an expensive mistake.

Everton also struck a deal to sign Henry Onyekuru, landing the winger from KAS Eupen in Belgium.

Onyekuru had taken Belgian football by storm, smashing 22 goals in his only top-flight season before joining Everton.

Why Henry Onyekuru left Everton

The Nigerian winger was a man in demand, and Everton pounced, securing Onyekuru as a big talent for the future.

Onyekuru immediately returned to Belgium by joining Anderlecht on loan, scoring 10 times in 28 games across an injury-hit season.

After 16 goals in 44 games on loan at Galatasaray, Onyekuru’s work permit application was rejected and Everton were left in a pickle.

Onyekuru was sold to Monaco as his Premier League dream came to an end before it ever really started.

“I didn’t have the work permit and my head wasn’t there (at Everton) because I knew I wouldn’t get it,” Onyekuru told The Athletic in 2020. 

“I knew they wanted me to go to Monaco. I had no choice but to go. I didn’t want to push or cause a crisis as I knew I wouldn’t have to go back to Everton and train on my own without the team. It was not my decision to go to Monaco. I wanted to go back to Galatasaray,” he added.

Onyekuru’s decision to join Everton really didn’t pay dividends, but the winger has no regrets over the move.

Speaking in 2021, Onyekuru was seemingly comfortable in the knowledge that red tape scuppered his Premier League dream, not his actual talent.

“The first dream is to play in the Premier League, it may not have worked out at Everton, but I have no regrets about it,” said Onyekuru.

“When I received offers from top clubs in England, I knew back then that I needed a work permit to play. That it didn’t happen then has nothing to do with my talent but red tape that’s beyond my control,” he added.

Where is Henry Onyekuru now?

Onyekuru never really got going at Monaco and returned to Galatasaray for two mixed loan spells.

2021 brought a move to Olympiacos, but he was sent back to Türkiye with Adana Demirspor after a one-goal season in Greece.

Onyekuru’s loan to Adana Demirspor was turned permanent in 2023 after eight goals in 18 games, sparking a big move to Saudi Arabia.

Al-Fayha pounced for Onyekuru in 2023, and while he scored 11 goals in his first season, last term was an injury-hit campaign.

Onyekuru is back in European football after joining Turkish side Genclerbirligi over the summer.

The move has yet to work out, as Onyekuru has played just 101 minutes across seven Super Lig appearances.

Onyekuru isn’t even involved with Nigeria either, as his last cap for the Super Eagles came in 2022.

The 28-year-old hasn’t lived up to his potential and certainly hasn’t been able to truly settle down since leaving Everton.

Who knows how Onyekuru’s career could have turned out if he had gained that work permit at Everton, but six clubs in just over six years since leaving Goodison Park is a fine demonstration of his nomadic career.