Super Eagles star Awoniyi thanks ‘family club’ Liverpool for taking care of him

Awoniyi celebrates scoring against Liverpool | Imago

Super Eagles star Awoniyi thanks ‘family club’ Liverpool for taking care of him

Ayoola Kelechi 20:03 - 28.10.2023

Awoniyi never managed to make an appearance for Liverpool but is grateful for the opportunity to be part of the Reds' family

Ahead of his return to his former side, Nigerian forward Taiwo Awoniyi has spoken in glowing terms about his time at Liverpool, thanking them for having his back while he was a youngster.

Awoniyi grateful to Liverpool for good start

The former Union Berlin forward spent six years at Liverpool but never got to make an official appearance for the Reds, partly due to issues obtaining a work permit.

Despite not making an appearance for the Reds, Awoniyi still holds a special place in his heart for Liverpool and was full of praise for his former team.

Awoniyi trains with Liverpool stars | FootyNaija

Speaking ahead of Liverpool’s fixture against his current side, Nottingham Forest, Awoniyi recalled having to move around after playing for the Reds before playing for the Tricky Trees, saying, “It’s been a long journey!”

Awoniyi recalls Liverpool spell

The Nigerian forward told Liverpool.com that playing at Anfield was still a dream that he had been happy to realise after appearing there for Nottingham Forest last season.

“Last season playing at Anfield [Forest lost 3-2 in April] was a dream come true, he said, continuing, “Of course I probably dreamed of playing there for Liverpool before I left, so playing there against them, it was a mixed feeling, I would say!”

Awoniyi celebrates scoring against Liverpool | Imago
Awoniyi celebrates scoring against Liverpool | Imago

He further explained how important his Liverpool period was to him and how well he was treated at Merseyside, saying, “Liverpool, I always say, is a family club. You develop as a person as well as a footballer, and I give so much credit to Liverpool for the way they looked after me, all the time I was away. I’m forever grateful for that.

“It was an important period, really good for me, and it was a big reason I was able to develop into the player and the person I have.”

var widgetLoaderConfig = widgetLoaderConfig || { CDN_URL: 'https://widgets.sportal365.com', APP_LINK: 'desktop', API_URL: 'https://africa.football.api.sportal365.com/', API_KEY: '2f852b4de2f3a5cf3188e74b33087bb4:2c18422f8e826a7d11aeed52edb2449e', LANG: 'en', REQUEST_INTERVAL: 30, ENABLE_BET_SLIP: false, AUTHOR: false, THEME: "light", TOURNAMENT_ORDER: "pulse_nigeria", LINK_OPTIONS_V2: { 'player' : { 'url': '/football/player/{playerId}' }, 'team' : { 'url': '/football/{teamId}' }, 'tournament': { 'url': '/football/competition/{tournamentId}' }, 'match': { 'url' : '/football/match/{matchId}', 'sort': { 'criteria': 'alphabetically', 'direction': 'asc' } }, 'configuration': { 'newWindow': false }, 'standings_tournament': { 'url': '/football/competition/{tournamentId}/standings' } } }; if (!document.querySelector('script[src="https://widgets.sportal365.com/loader.bundle.min.js"]')) { window.setTimeout(function () { let scriptCss = document.createElement('link'); scriptCss.href = 'https://www.pulsesports.co.ke/css/sport-widgets.css?v=1668785443'; scriptCss.rel = 'stylesheet'; scriptCss.type = 'text/css'; document.body.appendChild(scriptCss); let scriptTag = document.createElement('script'); scriptTag.src = 'https://widgets.sportal365.com/loader.bundle.min.js'; scriptTag.defer = true; scriptTag.onload = function () { window.setTimeout(function () { new SMPWidgetsLoader(widgetLoaderConfig); }, 200); }; document.head.appendChild(scriptTag); }, 0); } else { new SMPWidgetsLoader(widgetLoaderConfig); }

Awoniyi will get to play against Liverpool again as Nottingham Forest travel to Anfield looking to end a streak of five matches without a win.

Related content