Goodbye Taiwo Awoniyi: Who comes next for Nottingham Forest?

A powerful forward is still on Nottingham Forest’s shortlist of targets this summer, a signing that has become all the more pressing after supporters at the City Ground on Sunday bid an emotional farewell to a player who embodies all the qualities of a goal-getting battering ram.

Despite starting only six Premier League games over the past two seasons, Taiwo Awoniyi was given a guard of honour on the City Ground pitch at half-time, his team-mates lining up to hug him by way of a send-off before his switch to newly-promoted Coventry City.

The 10 goals the Nigerian scored in the 2022-23 campaign helped stave off the threat of relegation in the first season after winning the Championship play-offs. They were the foundations on which Forest have built.

As they head into their fifth consecutive season in the top flight, Forest will miss Awoniyi’s ever-present smile, his bubbly demeanour and positive influence in the dressing room.

His departure will, however, make room in the squad for Forest to sign another forward, with Chelsea’s Liam Delap still among their attacking possibilities. The 23-year-old – who was also a Forest target prior to his £30million ($40.6m) move to London from Ipswich last summer – has dropped down the Blues’ pecking order after Chelsea signed Danny Welbeck from Brighton & Hove Albion.

Head coach Oliver Glasner still hopes Forest will make two or three additions before the window closes, with a wing-back and a central midfielder also on their shopping list.

Glasner believes the evidence of the past few Premier League seasons – when those higher up the top-scorers list have all been of a similar ilk — is enough to underline the value of powerful forwards. Erling Haaland, Alexander Isak, Ollie Watkins and Jean-Philippe Mateta, who Glasner had at Crystal Palace, have all thrived.

He likes his sides to have goal threat from numerous areas, including the two No 10 roles within his preferred 3-4-2-1 formation. But he puts great stock in having a figurehead up front, a role that Mateta – who is not among Forest’s targets – very capably fulfilled in south London.

In the meantime, Glasner is relaxed about the possibility of starting the new campaign with Chris Wood and Igor Jesus as his two main options for the No 9 role.

Wood converted from the penalty spot with typical confidence as Forest defeated Brest 2-0 in their final pre-season outing at the City Ground. It was a dominant display that saw him lead the Forest line with great purpose and poise.

Igor Jesus found the net as Forest claimed a 2-0 win over Coventry City behind closed doors on Saturday, with Neco Williams getting the other goal for a Forest side that included many of the squad’s big-hitters, including Matz Sels, Murillo, Morgan Gibbs-White, Ibrahim Sangare and James McAtee.

“We have Chris and Igor — he has scored in almost every game he played in pre-season, with the exception of Barcelona. Chris, you can see the impact he has on the game; his physical presence. He was ruthless with the penalty,” said Glasner in an interview with gathered journalists. “We have two great strikers and we also have other players scoring goals. Our wing-backs are getting into dangerous positions.

“And we have great players in the No 10 role who can score goals. We feel well prepared. But we always look at what is possible, at who is available. If we can add a player who gives us something we do not have in the squad, and it makes sense from a financial point of view, then we will try to do it. We have two or three additions in the pipeline.”

Chris Wood scored from the penalty spot against Brest (David Rogers/Getty Images)

Glasner has been happy with the £35million addition of Ousmane Diomande from Sporting CP and the capture of Xaver Schlager on a free transfer following the end of his contract at RB Leipzig. There is no sense of crisis over further new additions, with Glasner feeling he has two players to compete in every position. Equal importance will be given to trimming the squad, with one or two players – including defender Tyler Bindon – likely to leave on loan.

Wood is of a determined mind after suffering a frustrating campaign that saw him impacted by a knee injury that sidelined him from mid-October to early April — and believes Forest have the options to be competitive up front.

Glasner thinks highly of the 34-year-old New Zealander, who scored 20 goals as Forest finished seventh and secured Europa League qualification in the 2024-2025 season – and Wood believes he can thrive in the role Glasner likes his centre-forward to play.

“Both myself and Igor can do that role, no problem. We will have to fight it out for that starting berth. We might have to share it throughout the season. We will have to do a job for the team,” Wood told journalists including The Athletic. “Igor has great ability.”

“Taiwo was an integral part of the dressing room. You can see the love we have for him and the fans love him. He will be sorely missed. He works hard for the team and is just a great lad. I am sure he will do great things (at Coventry).”

Whether there are new additions before next weekend or not, Glasner will hope the team he selects to face Leeds will be just as capable of achieving the levels he believes Awoniyi can.