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Super Eagles stars Ola Aina and Taiwo Awoniyi have both earned places among Nottingham Forest’s 20 best signings of the Premier League era, Footynaija reports.
The Nottingham Post ranked Aina fifth and Awoniyi 14th in its assessment of 79 players signed since Forest ended their 23-year absence from the top flight in 2022. Aina’s placing comes after three seasons of growing influence at the City Ground, while Awoniyi’s ranking reflects the decisive goals that helped keep Forest in the Premier League during their first campaign back.
Aina arrived from Torino on a free transfer in 2023 and has developed into one of Forest’s most versatile defenders. He made 22 Premier League appearances in his first season before starting 35 of 38 league matches in 2024/25, when he also scored twice. Forest extended his contract until 2028 after that campaign.
Awoniyi, meanwhile, was Forest’s record signing at £17.5 million when he arrived from Union Berlin in 2022. He finished his debut Premier League season as the club’s top scorer with 10 league goals, including the 19th-minute winner against Arsenal on 20 May 2023 that secured survival.
His impact went beyond that final-day drama. Eight of Awoniyi’s league goals before the Arsenal match had already earned Forest 11 points, while his four-goal burst across wins against Southampton and Chelsea gave Steve Cooper’s side a late-season surge.
The former Union Berlin forward left Forest to team up with Super Eagles teammate Frank Onyeka at Coventry City this summer.
