If there’s one thing that RB Leipzig know how to do, it’s buying raw, young prospects and molding them into bonafide stars who can thrive at the apex of European football.
By Zach Lowy
From Christopher Nkunku (Chelsea) to Dominik Szoboszlai (Liverpool) to Joško Gvardiol (Manchester City), more and more players are earning lucrative moves to the biggest clubs in Europe after impressing in Saxony. At 19 years of age, it’s only a matter of time before Antonio Nusa does the same.
Born in Langhus, Norway to a Nigerian father and a Norwegian mother, Nusa joined Stabæk‘s youth academy in 2018 and ascended the ranks before eventually making his Eliteserien debut on 30 May 2021. Over the next three months, Nusa would register 3 goals in 13 appearances, including a brace on his full debut vs. Viking, before joining Club Brugge on the final day of the summer transfer window. While his first season abroad mainly took place with Club Brugge’s U19s, Nusa did play once in the Croky Cup, once in the regular season, and twice in the Jupiler Pro League Championship Play-Offs, where he opened his account in Belgium. Union Saint-Gilloise had led the table for 200 days until losing twice to Club Brugge in the playoffs, with Nusa scoring in a 2-0 victory vs. USG and leading them to their first league championship hat-trick since the 1970s.
“Nusa is one of the youngsters who’s reminded me the most of Kylian Mbappé in recent years,” said Jacek Kulig of the Football Talent Scout website. “I already spotted his incredible motor skills, bravery, and verticality while watching him for Stabæk. He’s able to combine his elite motor skills with a great amount of bravery, and most importantly, his decision-making is improving so that he won’t be just a speedster in the future.”
Nusa built on this momentum by grabbing an assist in his first league match of the 2022/23 campaign before finding the back of the net on 13 September 2022 in a 4–0 away win against Porto. In doing so, Nusa became the youngest Norwegian player to feature in the UEFA Champions League and the second-youngest player to score in the Champions League behind Ansu Fati (both Lamine Yamal and George Ilenikhena have since surpassed him). Despite registering just 3 goal contributions in 31 first-team appearances, Nusa’s performances attracted the attention of Ståle Solbakken, who gave him his Norway debut on 7 September 2023: Nusa quickly repaid his trust with a goal and an assist in a friendly vs. Jordan before grabbing a brace of assists vs. Georgia and an assist vs. Cyprus in his first two competitive matches. It wasn’t long before the Premier League came calling, with Brentford preparing to launch a €33m plus €4m bid in January 2024, only to pull out due to underlying medical issues with the player’s back and knees.
Although Nusa’s 2023/24 season was marred with injuries and a lack of productivity in front of goal (4 goals and 4 assists in 46 appearances), he nevertheless finished joint-third in Club Brugge’s squad for shots per 90 (2.9) and joint-first for possession won in the final third per 90 (0.9), while only Royal Antwerp’s Chidera Ejuke (4.0) completed more successful dribbles per 90 than Nusa (3.8) in the entire Belgian top-flight. It’s why RB Leipzig decided to sign Nusa to a five-year contract, paying €21 million plus €7 million for the teenager. Nusa seamlessly adjusted from Belgium to Germany with a goal contribution in each of his first three appearances, scoring on his debut – a 4-1 win vs. RW Essen in the DFB-Pokal – grabbing the winner vs. VfL Bochum within minutes of coming off the bench, and assisting Loïs Openda’s decisive goal to end Bayer Leverkusen’s 43-match domestic unbeaten run. He was back at it again in October, slicing through Heidenheim’s defense like butter and carving a through ball towards Openda, who cooly finished the sole goal of the match, whilst he also put the seal on a 4-2 victory against St. Pauli in the cup and grabbed a goal and an assist in their 4-3 loss to Hoffenheim on 23 November.
“Nusa started off as a pure No. 10 because Leipzig wanted him to provide exactly what Xavi Simons offers,” said German football consultant Adam Khan. “He’s mobile between the lines and quite athletic for a traditional central player, but Leipzig have recently recognised that his best qualities are as a true winger.”
“Leipzig would potentially fear that the left-sided pairing of David Raum and Nusa could be too offensive, but with Raum out injured, they have been more comfortable playing Nusa in a true winger role. Initially, Nusa was often only coming on late in fixtures, but since Xavi Simons got hurt on October 23, he has become a talisman in attack, and he’s probably been Leipzig’s most consistent and impressive attacking weapon since the start of November.”
Leipzig’s injury crisis has seen key figures like Simons, Raum, Xaver Schlager and Yussuf Poulsen miss significant periods, and it has also taken a toll on their form. After a run of five losses and a draw – the latest being a 5-1 home drubbing vs. Wolfsburg – Leipzig needed a win on Wednesday to save Marco Rose’s job. Once again, Nusa delivered the goods with a hat-trick of assists en route to a 3-0 win against Eintracht Frankfurt in the DFB-Pokal, whilst he also completed the most dribbles in Leipzig’s 2-0 victory at Holstein Kiel on Saturday.
It doesn’t get any easier for Rose’s side, who will host Aston Villa and Eintracht before closing out the year with a trip to Bayern Munich, but in Nusa, they have a rising star who looks set to play not just a vital role for Leipzig, but Norway as well. Having grabbed a brace vs. Slovenia and a goal and assist vs. Kazakhstan in their final two matches of 2024, Nusa is quickly emerging as a key figure in attack for Løvene, and alongside the likes of Erling Haaland, Martin Ødegaard, and Alexander Sørloth, he may just have what it takes to spearhead Norway to their first major tournament since 2000.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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