Taiwo Micheal Awoniyi (born August 12, 1997) is a talented professional footballer from Nigeria who plays as a forward for the Premier League club Nottingham Forest and the Nigeria national team, Super Eagles.
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Taiwo Awoniyi Biography
Full Name | Taiwo Micheal Awoniyi |
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Date of Birth | August 12, 1997 |
Place of Birth | Kwara State, Nigeria |
Football Club | Nottingham Forest, Super Eagles |
Net Worth | $2.5 million |
Social Media Handles | Instagram: @awoniyi18 |
Early Life
Taiwo Awoniyi was born on the 12th of August, 1997, in Ilorin, Kwara State, which falls in the North-Central geopolitical zone of Nigeria.
Career
Professional Career
Awoniyi won the Most Valuable Player award at a Coca-Cola football tournament in London in 2010. Seyi Olofinjana noticed his performance at the game and extended an invitation for him to join the Imperial Soccer Academy.
Awoniyi got over £400,000 to join English club Liverpool on August 31, 2015, however, he was immediately loaned to FSV Frankfurt of Germany.
As a late substitute in a German Cup encounter against Hertha Berlin, Awoniyi made his Frankfurt debut. He played six league games as a substitute before making his league debut on February 19, 2016, against FC St. Pauli, for 89 minutes. Awoniyi was demoted while playing for Frankfurt, and at the end of the campaign, he joined Liverpool.
NEC, a Dutch team, announced on August 26, 2016, that Awoniyi had signed a season-long loan agreement with them. He was scheduled to join the team the following week after his work permit formalities were finalized. He made his Eredivisie debut on September 10 in NEC’s 4-0 loss to PSV Eindhoven, coming on for Michael Heinloth in the 72nd minute. Taiwo experienced his second straight relegation from the Eredivisie with NEC in 2017.
Awoniyi left NEC in July 2017 and signed a season-long loan with Royal Excel Mouscron in Belgium. He made his debut on August 12 against KSC Lokeren, starting the game, and scored within 22 minutes.
Awoniyi renewed his long-term contract with Liverpool on July 17 and agreed to a season-long loan with Gent, a different Belgian team, on July 23. He stated in April that his inability to obtain a work visa for the UK might put an end to his Liverpool career.
Awoniyi returned to Union Berlin on July 20, 2021, on a permanent basis. According to reports, the German team paid £6.5 million for the attacker. In this agreement, Liverpool negotiated a 10% sell-on clause.
Awoniyi signed a five-year contract to join Nottingham Forest, a recently promoted Premier League team, on June 25, 2022. Notterm Forest paid a transfer fee of £17 million to get him, setting a club record. He scored his first Premier League goal in a 1-0 victory over West Ham United on August 14, 2022.
International Career
At the 2013 FIFA U-17 World Cup, Awoniyi played for Nigeria and helped his country win the title by tallying four goals. After winning the 2015 African U-20 Championship in Senegal, he also represented Nigeria at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in New Zealand.
He made his Nigeria U-23 team debut on April 12, 2015, and scored twice against Zambia to help his squad advance to the 2015 All-African Games.
Taiwo Awoniyi made his debut in Nigeria’s 1-0 loss to the Central African Republic after Gernot Rohr chose him to represent Nigeria in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Awoniyi was chosen to represent Nigeria in the AFCON 2021, where he led the team’s offensive line the entire competition. His one and only goal came against Sudan in the 3-1 group stage victory.
Personal Life
On June 15, 2018, in Kabba, Taiwo Awoniyi wed his lover Taiwo Jesudun in a traditional wedding and engagement ceremony. On June 16, in Ilorin, they had a white wedding.
Honors
Nigeria U20
- 2015: African U-20 Championship
Nigeria U17
- 2013: FIFA U-17 World Cup
Net Worth
According to the analysis made from different sources online, Taiwo Awoniyi has an estimated net worth of $2.5 million.
Social Media Handles
Taiwo Awoniyi is very active on social media platforms, especially on Instagram where he has a verified account with over 107,000 followers. On Twitter also, he has over 19,500 followers. You can follow him on social media through the following handles.
- Instagram: @awoniyi18
- Twitter: @taiwoawoniyi18