Early career Born and raised in
Ajegunle,
Lagos, Ighalo played in his country with
Prime and
Julius Berger, where he was discovered by
FIFA agent Marcelo Houseman who recommended him to Atta Aneke, being subsequently taken on trial by Norway's
Lyn. He made his
Tippeligaen debut on 16 September 2007 at the age of just 18, scoring in a 2–0 home win against
Viking. He scored six goals in 13 matches in
his second year to help his team to the seventh position, and subsequently arose interest from other clubs in the country, with
Brann reporting Lyn to the
Norwegian Football Federation for unfairness in the negotiation process.
Udinese and Granada On 30 July 2008, Ighalo signed for
Udinese in Italy, moving alongside teammate
Jo Inge Berget and agreeing to a five-year contract. He appeared rarely in
Serie A in
his debut season, scoring against
Cagliari in a 6–2 home routing. Four of his five league appearances came as a late
substitute. Ighalo was
loaned to
Granada in the summer of 2009, as part of the partnership agreement between Udinese and the Spaniards. He scored 17 times in
his first year (
playoffs included) and five in
the second, as both seasons ended in promotion; this was interspersed with a brief loan stint back in Italy, with
Cesena. Ighalo continued playing with Granada in the following years, still owned by the
Udine club. He played his first
La Liga match on 27 August 2011, starting and playing the full 90 minutes in a 0–1 home loss to
Real Betis.
Watford in 2014 Ighalo joined
Watford on a season-long loan deal from Udinese, on 29 July 2014. He made his debut for the English club in
the first round of the
League Cup away to
Stevenage on 12 August, and scored his first goal in the
Championship against
Brentford on 30 September by tucking the ball home after his initial
penalty was saved by
David Button, in a 2–1 home win. On 24 October 2014, Watford terminated Ighalo's loan and re-signed him on a permanent deal the same day after Udinese released him from his contract. Exactly three months later, he scored four second-half goals and was voted
man of the match in a 7–2 home routing of
Blackpool, who led 0–2 at half time; he took his league tally to 14 on 10 February 2015, after netting a brace to help his team come from behind at Brentford to win it 2–1 – his second came through an injury-time header. Ighalo scored in his
Premier League debut on 8 August 2015, replacing
José Manuel Jurado 16 minutes from time and putting the visitors ahead 2–1 in an eventual 2–2 draw away against
Everton for
the season opener. He netted twice in a 2–0 home win over
West Ham United on 31 October, reaching seven goals for
the season and becoming the highest club scorer in the competition after just 11 matches. On 20 December, Ighalo scored in a Watford victory for the fourth consecutive time, netting a brace in a 3–0 win over
Liverpool. His five-goal haul earned him December's
Premier League Player of the Month, while his manager
Quique Sánchez Flores won
the equivalent award. Ighalo broke a 599-minute personal scoring drought on 13 March 2016, with a goal in a 2–1 win against holders
Arsenal in
the quarter-finals of the
FA Cup, putting the Hornets into the last four for the first time in nine years. On 12 August he signed a new five-year contract but,
the following season, he scored just one league goal and did not find the net in any of his last 15 games.
Changchun Yatai On 31 January 2017, Ighalo joined
Chinese Super League club
Changchun Yatai for a reported £20 million.
Shanghai Shenhua Ighalo transferred to
Shanghai Shenhua on 14 February 2019. In March, he said he turned down a move to
Barcelona the previous month. In March 2020, he was offered a contract extension worth over £400,000 a week by Shenhua.
Loan to Manchester United On 31 January 2020, Ighalo returned to the Premier League, joining
Manchester United on loan until the end of the season. In doing so, he became the first Nigerian player, and the seventh African, to join the club. After the move was confirmed, Ighalo revealed that he had taken a pay cut to make the move happen, calling it a "dream" to join the club he has long supported. He opted to wear the number 25 shirt, previously worn by United's first and longest-serving African player,
Quinton Fortune of
South Africa. His presence within the first team was initially blocked as a precautionary measure due to ongoing fears over the
COVID-19 outbreak in China. After three substitute appearances, Ighalo made his full debut for United in their
Europa League round-of-32 second-leg match against
Club Brugge on 27 February. He scored his first United goal, which was also his maiden goal in a European competition, as the hosts won 5–0. A week later, he scored his first brace for the club as United beat
Derby County 3–0 in the
FA Cup. In United's final game before the
suspension of football due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Ighalo scored a half-volley after juggling the ball in a 5–0 win over
LASK; it was voted United's goal of the month for March. With football suspended due to the
COVID-19 pandemic and Ighalo's loan set to expire at the end of May, United announced that they had agreed to extend Ighalo's loan deal until 30 January 2021. On 26 January 2021, Ighalo posted a farewell message on social media, ahead of his imminent departure from United at the end of the month. United confirmed Ighalo's departure the following day.
Al Shabab On 4 February 2021, Ighalo joined
Saudi Professional League club
Al Shabab on a two-and-a-half-year contract.
Al-Hilal On 29 January 2022, he signed for Saudi club
Al-Hilal. He finished his first season as the league's top scorer with 24 goals. On 26 February 2023, he scored four goals in a 7–0 win over
Al-Duhail in the
Champions League semi-final.
Al-Wehda On 15 August 2023, Ighalo joined
Al-Wehda on a free transfer. ==International career==