Early career Nketiah started his career with
Chelsea after being scouted at the age of nine while playing for south-east London Sunday team Hillyfielders. He was released by Chelsea in 2015.
Arsenal in 2017 Nketiah joined the
Arsenal Academy after leaving Chelsea and played for the club at youth levels. After that season, Nketiah was called up by
Arsène Wenger for the
first team's pre-season trip to Australia and China. On 28 September 2017, Nketiah was called up to the first team for Arsenal's
UEFA Europa League match against
BATE Borisov. He came on as an 89th-minute
substitute for
Joe Willock as Arsenal won 4–2. His next appearance came nearly a month later against
Norwich City in the
EFL Cup as an 85th-minute substitute. He scored after 15 seconds with his first touch to tie the match, adding another in
extra time to win it for Arsenal. Nketiah was set for a
loan move to
Bundesliga club
FC Augsburg in January 2019 transfer window, but due to an injury to
Danny Welbeck, Nketiah stayed at Arsenal. Nketiah scored his first goal in the
Premier League on the last day of the season away to
Burnley on 12 May 2019. He was an unused substitute in the
UEFA Europa League final 4–1 defeat against Chelsea on 29 May, receiving a runners-up medal.
Loan to Leeds United On 8 August 2019, Nketiah joined
Championship club
Leeds United on loan for the
2019–20 season. Leeds head coach
Marcelo Bielsa described Nketiah upon signing as a "young, important player in English football". He made his debut on 13 August in the EFL Cup against
Salford City, scoring his team's first goal during a 3–0 away victory. He scored on his Championship debut the following week, with the only goal in a 1–0 home win over
Brentford. After scoring his fourth goal of the season in Leeds' 2–0 win against
Barnsley on 15 September 2019, Bielsa described Nketiah as a "complete player". After being behind
Patrick Bamford in the pecking order, Marcelo Bielsa revealed Nketiah would have his chance to become the first-choice striker against
Queens Park Rangers, however the day before the match Nketiah picked up a lower abdomen injury, which kept him out of action for one month. He returned on 7 December, as a substitute in Leeds' 2–0 victory against
Huddersfield Town. His first league start for Leeds came on 29 December 2019, in a 5–4 victory over
Birmingham City. Nketiah also started the next match on 1 January 2020, in what would prove to be his final appearance for Leeds away to
West Bromwich Albion in a 1–1 draw. The result kept Leeds on top of the table on
goal difference. Nketiah picked up his first major medal of his career in July 2020 when Leeds United won the Championship title, with his seventeen appearances enough to make him eligible for a winner's medal.
Return to Arsenal Nketiah was recalled from his Leeds loan spell early by Arsenal on 1 January 2020. He was in the starting line-up in Arsenal's FA Cup fourth round victory against
AFC Bournemouth on 27 January, and scored the second goal as Arsenal won 2–1 away. Nketiah made his first Premier League start at home to
Newcastle United, before scoring in the next match against
Everton, sliding a volley into the corner. He became a regular in Arsenal's return to league play after the hiatus caused by the
COVID-19 pandemic, starting in the team's 3–0 loss away to
Manchester City, being replaced in the 67th minute by
Alexandre Lacazette. On 7 July, Nketiah received the first red card of his playing career, in a league game against
Leicester City. Two weeks later, Nketiah lifted his first major trophy of his career with Arsenal, coming on as a substitute in the 82nd minute in the 2–1 victory over Chelsea in the
2020 FA Cup Final at
Wembley Stadium. On 28 August 2020, Nketiah was in the starting line-up in the
2020 FA Community Shield at Wembley Stadium, where Arsenal beat
Liverpool 5–4 in a
penalty shoot-out after the match finished 1–1. On 19 September, he came on as a substitute in the 77th minute and scored the late winning goal in a 2–1 win against
West Ham United in the Premier League. This was his first goal of the season. Nketiah scored three times in the
Europa League group stage, his goals coming in both games against
Dundalk and the home game against
Rapid Vienna. He finished the season with six goals in all competitions. Nketiah began the
2021–22 season as backup to
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette. He scored in Arsenal's EFL Cup third and fourth round wins against
AFC Wimbledon and Leeds United, respectively. On 21 December 2021, he scored the first
hat-trick of his career, with three goals in a 5–1 win against
Sunderland in the EFL Cup quarter-finals. Following Aubameyang's departure in February, He was given a regular place in the starting line-up towards the end of the season, and scored five goals in Arsenal's last seven Premier League matches. These included a brace against Chelsea in a 4–2 win at
Stamford Bridge, and another brace against Leeds. Nketiah ended the season with ten goals: five in the EFL Cup and five in the Premier League. On 18 June 2022, he signed a new contract with Arsenal until June 2027. Despite Alexandre Lacazette leaving the club, Nketiah found himself back on the substitutes' bench following the signing of
Gabriel Jesus. However, he started all six of Arsenal's
Europa League group games and scored twice, in wins over
Zürich and
Bodø/Glimt, as Arsenal topped
Group A. He made his 100th first-team appearance for Arsenal in their win at Brentford on 18 September 2022. He got a lengthy run in the team when Gabriel Jesus was ruled out for a few months after picking up a knee injury in
Brazil's
2022 FIFA World Cup game against
Cameroon. On 26 December, he made his first Premier League start of the season when the competition resumed following the World Cup, scoring in Arsenal's 3–1 win against West Ham. On 22 January 2023, he scored twice, including the match-winning goal in the last minute of Arsenal's 3–2 victory over
Manchester United, to become the second Arsenal player to score a winner in the 90th minute against their rivals, after
Thierry Henry in January 2007. Nketiah started and opened the scoring in Arsenal's 2–1 win against
Nottingham Forest on the opening weekend of the
2023–24 Premier League season on 12 August 2023. Arsenal manager
Mikel Arteta described him as "a role model", adding that he was impressed with his attitude in training. On 3 October, he made his
UEFA Champions League debut, coming off the bench in the second half of a 2–1 away defeat against
Lens. On 28 October, he scored his first Premier League hat-trick in a 5–0 home victory over
Sheffield United. On 12 December, Nketiah made his first Champions League start against
PSV Eindhoven, scoring his first goal of the competition as Arsenal left the
Philips Stadion with a 1–1 draw.
Crystal Palace On 30 August 2024, Nketiah joined fellow Premier League side
Crystal Palace for a reported fee of £25 million plus £5 million in add-ons. He signed a five-year deal with the club and was assigned the number 9 shirt, which was previously worn by
Jordan Ayew. He made his debut for the club in a 2–2 league home draw against
Leicester City on 14 September. On 17 September, he scored his first goal for Palace in a 2–1 win over
Queens Park Rangers in the third round of the
EFL Cup. On 18 December, he scored against his former club Arsenal in a 3–2 loss at the
Emirates Stadium in the quarter-finals of the same competition. On 25 February 2025, Nketiah scored his first Premier League goal for Palace in a 4–1 win over
Aston Villa. He came on as a second-half substitute as Palace defeated
Manchester City in the
2025 FA Cup final on 17 May, winning their first ever major trophy and Nketiah's second FA Cup title. In his following game, Nketiah scored his first European goal for Palace in a 2–0 away win over
Dynamo Kyiv in the
UEFA Conference League, further extending Palace's unbeaten run to a club-record 19 games. ==International career==