Super Eagles forward, Taiwo Awoniyi, is on the verge of achieving a significant milestone as he could score in his eighth consecutive Premier League game when his Nottingham Forest side face Chelsea on Saturday.
Should Awoniyi find the back of the net against the Blues at Stamford Bridge, he would set the record for most consecutive Premier League games scored in by an African player in the EPL.
The Nigeria international scored in his seventh consecutive match as Forest suffered a 3-2 loss to Manchester United at Old Trafford last Saturday.
The strike saw the former Union Berlin forward become the first Forest player to score in seven straight games joining Mohammed Salah and Emmanuel Adebayor as the only Africans to have achieved this feat.
His seven-game scoring streak makes him the outright leader among Nigerian players in the English top-flight league as Osaze Odemwingie previously held the record of five consecutive games.
The 26-year-old has now scored nine goals in his last seven Premier League games.
Awoniyi kicked off that excellent run with a brace each against Chelsea and Southampton in May. He then netted the goal that ended Arsenal’s league title hopes before scoring in the 1-1 draw versus Crystal Palace on the last day of the campaign.
This season, he scored in the 2-1 loss to Arsenal on opening day, a 2-1 win over Sheffield United and a 3-2 defeat to United.
Chelsea are aiming to win three competitive matches on the bounce for the first time since March after Mauricio Pochettino’s side scraped a 2-1 EFL Cup second-round win over AFC Wimbledon last time out, and got their first league win of the season with a 3-0 victory over Luton Town last Friday.
A four-point haul from their opening three games has Chelsea lying in the middle of the table in 10th place – an all too familiar sight from last season – but by hitting the Hatters for three without reply, the Blues ended a miserable eight-match streak without a home win in the Premier League.
Keeping out Rob Edwards’s side also saw Chelsea record their first Premier League clean sheet since April, while they have navigated each of their last four Premier League matches at Stamford Bridge without suffering defeat, but two Big Six teams have already had to survive scares against their upcoming visitors this term.
After giving Arsenal a good run for their money and leaving it late to see off newly-promoted Sheffield United, Nottingham Forest were in dreamland at the Theatre of Dreams last weekend, storming into a two-goal lead against Manchester United thanks to Taiwo Awoniyi’s finish and Willy Boly’s header.
Steve Cooper’s men became the first team to ever take a 2-0 lead against Man United within the opening four minutes of a Premier League game, but their master plan was soon foiled by the resurgent Red Devils, who drew themselves level through Christian Eriksen and Casemiro before Joe Worrall was sent for an early bath.
The 10 men of Forest did all they could to keep Man United at bay, but after Danilo was penalised for felling Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes completed a sensational Red Devils comeback, before Cooper’s side also succumbed to a late Zeki Amdouni winner in the EFL Cup versus Burnley.
At face value, three defeats from their opening four games of the new season is an unsightly record indeed, but the Tricky Trees and Awoniyi who are in 14th place in the table left the Emirates and Old Trafford patting themselves on the back.
Forest also held Chelsea to a pair of stalemates in the 2022/23 Premier League season coming away from Stamford Bridge with a 2-2 draw to their name thanks to an Awoniyi brace.
Last season’s top scorer for the Trees will have a lot on his shoulders in this encounter also as Forest are still on the hunt for their first league away win since January 4 against Southampton.
The Nigeria international managed 21 goals in 64 Bundesliga games, but the former Mainz ace has raced to 13 goals in 30 Premier League matches.
With a goal each from his first three games, many are confident Awoniyi with lesser injury spells should get over a dozen goals for Forest this season and also ensure they retain their Premier League status for another season.
Credit: punchng.com
