Taiwo Awoniyi has praised Nottingham Forest teammate Brennan Johnson after he assisted the Nigerian during a massive win over Southampton.
The striker was put in front of the press after the 1-0 victory over the Saints at St Mary’s Stadium that took Forest to 15th in the Premier League.
Awoniyi tapped home after Johnson had dispossessed Lyanco on the halfway line, marauded towards Gavin Bazuna’s goal and squared for the 23-year-old.
The Nigeria international made no mistake from close ranks.
It was the fifth time that he’s scored this season and his fourth during a 1- 0 win in the Premier League.
After the game, Awoniyi hailed the impact of his teammate.
He was thankful for him squaring the ball and he was delighted to add to his tally.
He told the club’s official website: “It was a good press from the team for the goal, Brennan was brilliant with his energy and speed to get the ball into the box and I just had to be there to finish.”
Awoniyi checked in at the City Ground from Union Berlin for £17 million during the summer.
Last season, he scored 18 times in the Bundesliga and previously spent time on the books at Liverpool.
It’s great to see both players beginning to strike up an understanding with each other.
Throw Morgan Gibbs-White into the mix and Forest could start to really kick on in the coming weeks.
Johnson did what he failed to do on Sunday.
During the draw with Chelsea, he took a shot on himself when Awoniyi had a tap-in and was rightly criticised for it.
Against Southampton, there were no such mistakes.
His pass to Awoniyi was pin-point and the goal ensured a magnificent victory for the Reds on their travels.
There is definitely more to come from the two players.
Awoniyi now has five goals but he will have a higher target in mind for his maiden campaign in the Premier League.
Forest are out of the bottom three now.
That said, the Reds won’t want to rest on their laurels and they know they must continue winning games in the coming weeks.