Bursaspor head coach, Mustafa Er has played down fears over the fitness of Super Eagles striker Kelechi Iheanacho, who was substituted with a knock in the club’s 4-2 away win over Ankara Keçiörengücü in Turkey’s TFF First League. 

Iheanacho scored again in the match, but supporters grew anxious when he went off in the 69th minute, receiving treatment and walking off the pitch with a limp. Emir Kaan Gültekin replaced him.

Speaking after the game, Er described the problem as a small one and said the decision to withdraw the 30-year-old was purely a precaution. He said the club did not want to force the player or take any risks, adding that Iheanacho had wanted to carry on. With Bursaspor already 4-2 ahead and the result largely settled, the coach felt there was no sense in gambling with his top marksman.

No scan results or layoff were reported, and the club has not suggested he will miss any games.

The scare will be felt keenly at Bursaspor because of how central Iheanacho has been to their campaign. The former Manchester City and Leicester City forward, who joined as a free agent in July after leaving Celtic, has now scored in 12 consecutive league matches and has 16 league goals so far this season. Earlier this month, he broke the Turkish top-flight record for scoring in consecutive league games, surpassing the nine-match marks set by Metin Oktay at Galatasaray in 1962/63 and Sancaklı at Kocaelispor in 1995/96.

Er praised the feat while insisting that his teammates and the club deserved credit too.

The Green Crocodiles, who earned promotion from the TFF Second League last season, are chasing a return to the Süper Lig at the first attempt, and Iheanacho has said promotion is his main goal.

Bursaspor had a bad night in Ankara as well, with midfielder Lincoln sent off. Er said he had not yet spoken properly to the player and would do so after he had talked with the referee.

Iheanacho’s form has also carried over to the national team, where he scored in Nigeria’s 3-3 draw with Russia on October 6, so any concern about his fitness will be closely watched by Super Eagles fans.