Isaac Success Ajayi (born 7 January 1996) is a Nigerian professional footballer who plays as a forward. He is currently a free agent.
Early and personal life Isaac Success Ajayi was born on 7 January 1996 in Benin City, Nigeria. He started his football career with local youth side BJ Foundation Academy, and appeared regularly for the team as a young player.Eaglets Striker Close To Udinese Deal ; Complete Sports Nigeria, 10 June 2013
Club career In November 2013, Success signed a pre-contract agreement with Italian side Udinese, which would be effective from January 2014,Isaac Success Confirms He Will Join Udinese In January; All Nigeria Soccer, 12 November 2013 for a €400,000 fee.Isaac Success, la nuova scommessa dell'Udinese (Isaac Success, Udinese's new bet); Tutto Udinese, 26 May 2013 However, he was only granted a work permit in March of the following year,Isaac Success gets work permit today; The Nation Online, 14 March 2014 and immediately joined Spanish club Granada, being assigned to the reserves in Segunda División B.Success Isaac y Uche Agbo: nuevos jugadores del Granada CF (Success Isaac and Uche Agbo: new player of Granada CF) ; Granada's official website, 18 March 2014
On 31 August 2014, Success made his first-team debut, starting in a 1–1 away draw against Elche at the age of 18 years and seven months,Elche snatch last-gasp equalsier; ESPN FC, 31 August 2014 being their youngest player ever to appear in a La Liga match.Success, jugador más joven en debutar en Primera con el Granada (Success, the youngest player to debut in Primera with Granada); Marca, 1 September 2014 He scored his first professional goal on 7 December, netting his side's only goal in a home draw against Valencia, for the same scoreline.Granada 1–1 Valencia; ESPN FC, 7 December 2014 On 7 August 2015, Success extended his contract with the club, signing a four-year deal until 2019 and being subsequently promoted to the main squad.Isaac Success un año más de contrato (Isaac Success one more year of contract); Granada's official website, 7 August 2015
On 1 July 2016, Success agreed a five-year deal with English Premier League side Watford in a record transfer fee, estimated around £12.5 million from Granada. He scored just once in 19 appearances in the 2016–17 season and, after just one appearance for the team in the 2017–18 season, was loaned back to Spain, joining Málaga on 31 January 2018 until the remainder of the season.
On 26 August 2021, Success left Watford after a five-year spell, signing for Italian club Udinese on a three-year deal, the club he was previously linked to years before.
On 27 August 2024, Udinese terminated Success's contract by mutual consent, making him a free agent.
In October 2024, two months after leaving Udinese as a free agent, it was announced that Success had signed for highly decorated Emirati club Al-Wasl on a free transfer.
International career In 2013 Success was called up to Nigeria under-17's for the year's FIFA U-17 World Cup, being also named vice-captain. He appeared in the first two games, but was sidelined during the rest of the tournament due to an injury.Isaac Success fit for U-17 World Cup final; Goal.com, 8 November 2013 Success got his first call up to the senior Nigeria side for a 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Zambia in October 2016. On 23 March 2017, Success made his debut for Nigeria, coming on as a substitute in a 1–1 draw against Senegal at The Hive Stadium in London.
Career statistics Club
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupLeague cupOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsGranada B2013–14Segunda División B53———532014–15Segunda División B156———156Total209———209Granada2014–15La Liga19140——2312015–16La Liga30630——336Total49770——567Watford2016–17Premier League1910000—1912017–18Premier League 000010—102018–19Premier League3013122—3542019–20Premier League501010—702020–21Championship1010000—101Total6434142—726Málaga (loan)2017–18La Liga9000——90Udinese2021–22Serie A22221——2432022–23Serie A30121——3222023–24Serie A27100——271Total79442——836Career total22023153420023928
Honours Watford FA Cup runner-up: 2018–19
References
External links Profile at the Udinese Calcio website