Nottingham Forest striker Taiwo Awoniyi is slowly but surely striving to get back up to speed on the fitness front.
The Reds’ talisman missed a significant portion of the preseason to attend to personal affairs, which has hampered his conditioning.
Awoniyi has came off the bench in Forest’s three Premier League games this season without scoring.
He played 90 minutes in Newcastle’s Carabao Cup defeat, but the striker missed the critical fifth penalty in the shootout.
On Saturday, the Reds drew 1-1 with Wolves at the City Ground, leaving Forest unblemished with five points from their first three games.
Taiwo Awoniyi shares what really disappointed the Nottingham Forest dressing room on Saturday
It was disappointing that Forest were unable to score three points at the City Ground for the first time this season on Saturday.
Awoniyi and the Forest dressing room agreed after Jean-Ricner Bellegarde equalised just seconds after Chris Wood put the Reds ahead.
Awoniyi told Flash Score: “For us, we did everything properly and needed to do, but we didn’t get the three points, which is all that was missing.
“We feel horrible about this. We played exceptionally effectively as a team. We delivered, scoring one goal as well as another that was cancelled.
“The season has only just begun and we still have a long way to go. The City Ground would always want to win, regardless of who we were playing against.
“Even when we draw in tight matches, they believe we should have won. So we always aim to win every game.”
Awoniyi must prove fitness after international break
Some of the things made about Awoniyi throughout the transfer window have been utterly unacceptable.
The player who joined Forest from Union Berlin in 2022 has frequently bailed the team out since his arrival, and he deserves greater recognition.
However, there will come a time this season when Awoniyi must regain full fitness and confidence on the pitch.
Against Newcastle, he appeared like a player carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders, which is not the Awoniyi we know and love.
Nuno Espirito Santo did not acquire a new striker this summer, therefore the responsibility is on Awoniyi to get back on the scoresheet.
He should play some minutes for Nigeria over the international break, and with a tough run ahead, the striker has to start scoring again.