Super Eagles forward Ademola Lookman continued his outstanding form in Spain after scoring the winning goal in Atlético Madrid’s narrow 1-0 victory over Girona FC at the Wanda Metropolitano on Sunday evening.
The Nigerian international struck in the 20th minute to hand Diego Simeone’s side another crucial La Liga victory, while also achieving a personal milestone in the process.
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For the first time in his LaLiga career, Lookman has now scored in consecutive league matches, further highlighting his growing importance since arriving in Madrid during the winter transfer window.
The former Atalanta BC attacker reacted quickest to a dangerous low cross flashed across the six-yard box by French superstar Antoine Griezmann, calmly slotting home from close range.
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Lookman remained a constant threat throughout the contest and even had another effort ruled out for offside in the 33rd minute after briefly sending the home supporters into celebration.
The 28 year old also came close to doubling his tally early in the second half before a brilliant last minute intervention from the Girona defence denied him once again.
After another energetic display, Lookman was eventually withdrawn in the 63rd minute as Atlético held on for all three points.
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Sadiq Shines at Valencia as Ejuke and Akor Fall to Real Madrid
Elsewhere in Spain, Umar Sadiq continued his encouraging revival with Valencia CF after featuring in their thrilling 4-3 victory over his former club Real Sociedad at the Anoeta Stadium.
Sadiq came on for 17 minutes in the entertaining contest as Valencia strengthened their push for a strong finish to the campaign.
The Nigerian striker joined Valencia permanently in the summer after initially arriving on loan from Sociedad last season. Since then, he has steadily rebuilt his confidence, registering four league goals and two assists in 19 appearances.
Meanwhile, Super Eagles striker Akor Adams was unable to add to his impressive tally of 10 La Liga goals this season as Sevilla FC suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat against Real Madrid CF.
Adams played the entire 90 minutes but could not find a breakthrough against the Spanish giants, while fellow Nigerian Chidera Ejuke featured for 37 minutes in the defeat.
Paul Onuachu shares Turkish Golden Boot
In Türkiye, Paul Onuachu ended the season as joint top scorer in the Turkish Super Lig after finishing level on 22 goals with Eldor Shomurodov of İstanbul Başakşehir F.K..
Onuachu’s remarkable campaign slowed down late in the season after previously enjoying a devastating 10-game scoring streak.
The towering Nigerian striker failed to score for the seventh consecutive league match as Trabzonspor were beaten 3-0 at home by Gençlerbirliği S.K. on the final day.
That allowed Uzbekistan captain Shomurodov to draw level after netting his 22nd goal of the campaign on Saturday.
Despite missing the chance to finish outright top scorer, Onuachu’s achievement remains outstanding considering he scored his 22 goals in just 29 league appearances, while Shomurodov required 34 matches to reach the same tally.
Awoniyi, Aina, Arokodare, Chukwueze, Iwobi, Bassey face difficult moments in England
In England, Taiwo Awoniyi continued to build momentum for Nottingham Forest F despite their nervy 3-2 defeat to Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Awoniyi featured for 21 minutes after recently returning to the starting lineup and scoring a brace against Chelsea.
The bulky striker has now played 16 league matches this season, scoring four goals and providing one assist.
However, fellow Super Eagles defender Ola Aina remains sidelined with another injury setback and could now face a race against time to be fit for Nigeria’s upcoming Unity Cup matches and international friendlies in June.
Despite the defeat, Forest remain safe from relegation with 43 points from 37 league matches.
Meanwhile, Tolu Arokodare endured another frustrating afternoon as Wolverhampton Wanderers drew 1-1 against Fulham F.C
Arokodare made his 32nd Premier League appearance of the campaign but could not add to his modest tally of three goals and one assist this season, while Wolves remain set for relegation to the Championship.
In the same game, returning Alex Iwobi and Samuel Chukwueze both drew blanks for Fulham in a game that could have either way, as Calvin Bassey was also assured in his defensive contributions.
Nigerians struggle in Italy
In Italy, Fisayo Dele-Bashiru returned to action for S.S. Lazio after missing their Coppa Italia final defeat to Inter Milan.
The Nigerian midfielder came off the bench in Lazio’s heated Rome derby clash against AS Roma, which ended in a 2-0 defeat for Lazio and also saw red cards shown to players from both teams.
Dele-Bashiru featured for 29 minutes and still awaits his first goal of the season heading into the final weekend.
At relegated Pisa Sporting Club, Ebenezer Akinsanmiro continued to receive valuable Serie A minutes despite the club’s struggles.
ALSO READ: Lookman fires Atlético Madrid back to winning ways against Osasuna
He played 61 minutes during Pisa’s 3-0 defeat to SSC Napoli, while Rafiu Durosinmi missed the encounter amid growing transfer speculation.
Meanwhile, Maduka Okoye failed to extend his clean-sheet run for Udinese Calcio after recently becoming the first Nigerian goalkeeper since Vincent Enyeama to record 10 clean sheets in a single season across Europe’s top five leagues.
Okoye was beaten as early as the ninth minute by former Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy during Udinese’s clash against Cremonese.
Raphael Onyedika edges coser to Belgian Title
In Belgium, Raphael Onyedika moved closer to another league title with Club Brugge KV after they thrashed Royale Union Saint-Gilloise 5-0 on Sunday.
Although the Nigerian midfielder featured for only 16 minutes, transfer rumours surrounding his future did little to distract from the celebrations at the Jan Breydelstadion.
Brugge entered the game one point ahead of Union and have now extended their advantage to four points with just two games left this season.
Onyedika has made 30 league appearances this campaign, scoring once, as Brugge continue their push towards another Belgian league crown.
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