Taiwo Awoniyi facing lengthy spell out, may miss AFCON

Super Eagles and Nottingham Forest striker Taiwo Awoniyi is set for a significant spell on the sidelines after he underwent a surgery to correct an injury he suffered on international duty.

Awoniyi has been in fine form at club level this year, scoring almost at will for the Reds since the end of last season. The 26-year-old striker will now surely miss the rest of the year and possibly the AFCON in January through injury.

Forest manager Steve Cooper revealed that the striker will miss out on a few months of action after his surgery. The former Liverpool man picked up the injury after playing for Nigeria in the match against Lesotho in Uyo. He came off midway into the second half and showed no signs of an injury, but had to leave camp shortly after.

After playing for the Super Eagles at the 2021 AFCON in Cameroon, Awoniyi is highly unlikely to make it to next year’s edition in Cote d’Ivoire. This will create an opening for one of the outside strikers, such as Akor Adams or Gift Orban, to try and snatch up a place in the squad for the tournament.