Taiwo Awoniyi in action for Nottingham Forest in their Premier League clash against Chelsea, alongside two coaches, Sean Dyche and Pep Guardiola. [Photo Credit/ Imago].
Nottingham Forest head coach Sean Dyche has revealed the fitness status of two Super Eagles stars in Taiwo Awoniyi and Ola Aina, Soccernet.ng reports.
The Reds secured their second win of the Premier League season against Leeds United just before the International break.
They now return to face Arne Slot’s Liverpool on Saturday. The defending Premier League Champions have had a rough patch lately, losing four of their past five games across all competitions.
Get Our Sports News First – Join Our WhatsApp Channel Now!
Liverpool will be without Alisson Becker, who picked up a hamstring problem in the club’s loss to Galatasaray in September.
Jeremie Frimpong and Alexander Isak are doubts for the game against Sean Dyche’s side as well.
Aina, Awoniyi nearing full fitness for Forest
The two-time UEFA Champions League winners are currently 19th in the English top-flight and need to pick up the pace if they’re to stand a chance of safety.
However, not all of their players will be at full efficiency against Liverpool. Hudson-Odoi, Chris Wood, and Douglas Luiz are doubts as well.
“Callum Hudson-Odoi has made good progress,” Sean Dyche said in quotes revealed by Nottingham Post.
“He’s been on the grass with us this week, so he is certainly in consideration to be in the squad, which is better news.
“Chris Wood is getting re-scanned, so we are checking up on that. But it is good news so far.
“Being re-scanned is just part of the process, there is nothing untoward about it – it is just a check-up
“Douglas Luiz is making progress, but it is going to be a matter of time; it is not going to be instant.
“Angus Gunn is still recovering from a knee injury – it is sort of straightforward, but it is going to take a bit of time
“Dilane Bakwa is making good progress. He is on the grass but not with us; he is with the medical staff and sports science staff. Ola Aina is very similar.
“Oleksandr Zinchenko is making progress with the sports science team and the physios, not with us. And young keeper Aaron Bott is making progress, but is longer term. We still have a bit of a list.
“Callum is (the only one with a chance of playing on Saturday) at the moment. He is around it.
“If today and tomorrow go well and he feels OK, at least we can think about him being back in the fold. That will be a positive.
Dyche is looking forward to being reunited with Wood when he does return, since they previously worked together at Burnley.
Awoniyi came off the bench in Forest’s past three games, but another injury will see him miss the clash against the Premier League Champions.
“It is just a settling period, it is nothing too serious, it is a grumbling knee.
“It is serious enough to stop him from loading it; from loading in daily training, but it is settling down.
“Part of the recovery is to have it re-scanned to see where it is at. He is feeling good about himself, which is always a good sign
We are managing to keep his fitness levels up in the gym. It has just taken a bit of time for the injury to calm down. We hope we are towards the end of that period.
“He has improved, so credit to him for that. He will be a good figure to have back, particularly with his goal-scoring ability
“I thought Taiwo did really well when he came on (against Leeds). Unfortunately, he has now picked up a bit of an injury, and we will see how that settles down,” the ex-Everton coach concluded.
Awoniyi has played just four league games for Nottingham Forest this season, starting just one of those games while Ola Aina has been out since September due to a hamstring problem.