Nottingham Forest and former Liverpool striker, Taiwo Awoniyi has said that it had been a dream to play at Anfield but admits to having had ‘mixed feelings’.
The Nigerian never registered a single senior appearance for the Reds due to his work permit issues while at the club.
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However, he has since then gone on to become an established Premier League forward with Nottingham Forest.
Awoniyi had ‘mixed feelings’ while playing Liverpool at Anfield
The 26-year-old netted 11 times in all competitions last season for Forest. He also has 3 goals and 2 assists this season already, although he was sidelined since the beginning of this month.
Even though his groin injury will prevent him from featuring at Anfield this time, he was able to do so last season.
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The striker admitted to having had ‘mixed feelings’ about playing in front of the Liverpool crowd, as his side lost 3-2.
“Last season playing at Anfield was a dream come true,” Awoniyi told Liverpool’s official website as he previewed this weekend’s contest.
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!”
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‘I’m forever grateful for that’
The Nigerian international left the Reds in 2021 and joined the German club, Union Berlin. However, his impressive spell at Union Berlin earned him a move back to PL with Forest.
He has since gone on to become a permanent feature in Steve Cooper’s side. However, he still holds fond memories of Liverpool despite not getting the opportunity to play for the club.
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Awoniyi gives “credit” to Liverpool for the progression he made in his early years. He added that his experiences with the senior team provided a “wow” factor.
“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.
The training sessions, wow! I knew that this is the kind of training that you win something from! You don’t train like that and then at the end of the season you get nothing.
You look at the time, there was [Mohamed] Salah, [Sadio] Mane, [Roberto] Firmino and others. I knew the chances [of playing] were very, very slim.
I knew I needed to get to a place where I was playing every week. It was hard [leaving], but it was a decision I had to make.”
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