Remembering Christopher Nkunku's excellent first RB Leipzig spell
Christopher Nkunku has rejoined RB Leipzig on a season-long loan deal from AC Milan. He will be hoping to reproduce the scoring form he demonstrated during his first spell at the Red Bull Arena, where he developed into one of the Bundesliga's most feared strikers.
Nkunku, 28, came through the ranks at Paris-Saint Germain, where his pace and power attracted the attention of Leipzig, who moved swiftly to secure his services in July 2019.
It would prove to be an astute move for both parties, with the Frenchman scoring 47 goals and recording 43 assists over four Bundesliga seasons, helping to propel his club to a runners-up spot in the league, a UEFA Champions League semi-final berth and two consecutive DFB Cup triumphs.
Despite finding the net on his Bundesliga bow in a 4-0 defeat of Union Berlin, the then 21-year-old scored just five times in his debut top-flight season. Often aligned in a deeper role, he did, however, supply an impressive 13 assists - including four in a single match versus Schalke - to his team-mates, an aspect of his game that would be notable throughout his time in Germany.
The following season was also relatively muted for Nkunku, although his six goals and six assists in 28 top-flight outings did play a part in Leipzig finishing second in the league behind Bayern Munich.
It was during the 2021/22 campaign that Nkunku truly began to fulfil his huge potential. After becoming the first Leipzig player to score a hat-trick in the Champions League - against Manchester City - he would go on to rack up 20 goals and 13 assists, seeing off the likes of Robert Lewandowski and Erling Haaland to earn the Bundesliga Player of the Season award.
His goals that term were as eye-catching as they were varied. With his sensational free-kick against Hertha Berlin, cool finishes versus Bayern and Borussia Monchengladbach, or emphatic strikes away at Bochum and Borussia Dortmund, the French forward was busy proving that he was one of the hottest properties in the league - a player capable of getting fans on their feet at grounds all over the country.
Nkunku's prodigious form resulted in Didier Deschamps calling him up to the senior France squad for the first time in March 2022. "I think what I do on the pitch at Leipzig has enabled me to be part of the French national team," he explained, prior to making his debut in a friendly against Côte d’Ivoire later that month. He has since been capped for Les Bleus 18 times, scoring twice.
Watch: All Nkunku's Bundesliga goals
The best was yet to come at the culmination of that season: Die Roten Bullen secured their first piece of major silverware by beating Freiburg in the DFB Cup final, during which Nkunku played a key role, notching a second-half equaliser and then dispatching his penalty kick in the ensuing shoot-out.
Nkunku's final season at the Red Bull Arena was disrupted by a knee issue, but that did not prevent him from netting 16 times, a tally that was sufficient for him to finish joint-top of the Bundesliga scoring charts with Werder Bremen's Niclas Füllkrug. In doing so, he became the first-ever Leipzig player to win the Torjägerkanone.
A second successive DFB Cup triumph followed, as did another instrumental performance from Nkunku - in his last appearance in a Leipzig jersey - as his goal and assist helped to see off the challenge of Eintracht Frankfurt in the showpiece. All told, the marauding attacker registered 70 goals and 56 assists in 172 competitive appearances for the club.
That output, as well as his dribbling skills and blistering pace, piqued the interest of English heavyweights Chelsea, who swooped to acquire his signature in June 2023. Nkunku's time in London was plagued by injuries, though, and he was unable to replicate the form that saw him become one of the most sought-after forwards in Europe.
At the start of the 2025/26 season, Nkunku moved to Serie A giants AC Milan, where he scored seven goals in 32 league appearances. This return to Leipzig, then, could provide the 2022 Ballon d'Or nominee with the ideal opportunity to revilatise his career in familar surroundings, at a club in need of a clinical finisher.
Fans at the Red Bull Arena will be hoping Nkunku can seamlessly pick up where he left off, and that they will get to see the trademark celebration that originated in Leipzig colours - pulling a red balloon out of his sock and inflating it for his son, who loved balloons as a toddler - a number of times this coming season.
"My connection to RB Leipzig is very special," Nkunku said. "Even after leaving the club, I continued to keep a close eye on what was happening here.
"I'm now ready to add a new chapter to my time at Leipzig."
