…Lookman grabs brace, Sor, Adekanye also on target
Despite having the majority of the women’s league on break, the few Super Falcons in action over the weekend shone for their various clubs, PUNCH Sports Extra correspondents monitor actions across European leagues
Spain
Tony Payne (Sevilla)
The Super Falcons star was on target as Sevilla beat Madrid CFF 4-1 in the Primera Division Femenina on Sunday to end the club’s six games without a win.
The 27-year-old doubled Sevilla’s lead in the 18th minute after Imma Gabarro had opened the scoring for the hosts just eight minutes into the encounter.
The victory helps Sevilla move to 10th on the log.
Asisat Oshoala (Barcelona)
Oshoala scored twice as Barcelona Ladies defeated Sporting Huelva 3-0 in their Primera Division Femenina on Saturday.
The Nigerian opened the scoring for the Blaugrana 21 minutes before the visitors doubled their advantage 11 minutes later through Mariona Caldentey.
Oshoala scored her second and Barca’s third of the encounter in the 56 minutes before she was substituted making way for Keira Walsh 15 minutes from time.
The 28-year-old has now scored seven goals in 13 league appearances for Barcelona this season and is on course to defend the Golden Boot she won last season.
Ashley Plumptre (Leicester City)
Plumptre’s season has been blighted by injury but the Super Falcons star on Sunday was among the top performers as Leicester City Women kept a clean sheet in their 3-0 win over Brighton and Hove Albion women at The King Power Stadium.
The defender was solid for the English club before being substituted in the 84th minute for Mackenzie Smith.
The Foxes will be happy to have the Nigerian returned back from injury after they were able to keep two consecutive clean sheets, coincidentally, the same number of matches the Nigerian played since her return from injury.
Rasheedat Ajibade (Atletico Madrid)
Though she was unable to get on target for Atletico, Ajibade played a crucial role in the team’s 2-2 draw against Villarreal.
The Falcons star was heavily involved in the build-up to the two goals converted by Eva Navarro in the 21 and 56 minutes.
The 23-year-old has scored four goals and provided one assist so far this season.
Italy
Ademola Lookman (Atalanta)
Back in his goal-scoring form since November 2022, Ademola Lookman turned up in style for Atalanta as they brushed aside Salernitana 8-2 in the Italian Serie A matchday 18 on Sunday.
Lookman was a scorer and provider in the drubbing as he scored in both halves to increase his goals to nine this season while also taking up his assists tally to three.
For his first goal of the year, Lookman stepped up to convert from the spot in the 20th minute to give Atalanta a 2-1 lead over their visitors.
His second of the game and second of the year came in the 54th minute, taking the lead to 6-1 for Atalanta just as he turned provider in the 61st minute to assist Brazilian, Ederson, to give Atalanta a 7-2 lead.
The last time he scored in the Serie A was in their 2-3 loss against Inter Milan in November 2022.
Atalanta are now 6th on the Serie A table with 34 points from 18 games.
Isaac Success (Udinese)
Success was a provider for Udinese in their Italian Serie A 2-1 home loss to Bologna on Sunday. He provided the assist for the Bianconeri’s only goal in the 10th minute of the game, setting up Portuguese forward Beto.
Success played the entire duration of the game.
Unfortunately, Udinese slumped to a home defeat, courtesy of two second-half goals from their visitors.
The result leaves Udinese without a win in their last five games and they could drop further from 8th on the table with 25 points from 18 games.
Despite the loss, the assist will come as a consolation for Success who hasn’t delivered much for Udinese in terms of goals and assists this season.
After making 18 appearances in the Serie A with 61 percent as a starter, Success is yet to score this season and has only four assists to his name. His goal contribution for the club stands at 15 per cent.
Netherlands
Bobby Adekanye (Go Ahead Eagles)
Bobby Adekanye picked up his magic where he left off last week as he added to his goal tally for his Dutch Eredivisie side, Go Ahead Eagles in the 2-2 home draw against Utrecht.
After an own goal had pegged them back as early as the 3rd minute of the game, Adekanye rose to the occasion seven minutes later and restored parity for GAE, taking his season’s tally to three goals.
The Ibadan-born Adekanye continues to prove to be an integral part of the team and his latest performance follows up his matchday 15 credentials when he recorded a goal and an assist.
GAE still sit 10th in the league with 19 points in 16 games.
France
Moses Simon (Nantes)
After advancing in the Coup De France last week, Super Eagles winger Moses Simon and his French club Nantes returned to the Ligue 1 on Sunday in style, defeating nine men Montpellier 3-0 on matchday 19.
Simon however was neither among the scorers nor providers, but he played prominently for the entire duration of the game.
He was booked in the 69th minute for a rash tackle.
Simon has featured prominently for Nantes this season, scoring five goals and two assists. His goal participation for the club stands at 33 percent.
England
Carney Chukwuemeka (Chelsea)
Chukwuemeka was in action as Chelsea beat Crystal Palace 1-0 to halt their current poor run of form in a London derby at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
The England U-20 player of Nigerian descent made his first Chelsea start in the game and put in a decent performance before being substituted for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the 63rd minute.
Iheanacho, Ndidi (Leicester); Awoniyi, Dennis (Nottingham Forest)
Wilfred Ndidi and Kelechi Iheanacho could do in Leicester City’s lost 2-0 to Nottingham Forest despite the absence of Taiwo Awoniyi and Emmanuel Dennis at City Ground Stadium.
Brennan Johnson bagged a brace for the Tricky Trees to hand them their first-ever back-to-back Premier League victory.
Ndidi, who started the encounter was confined in his contribution to the game, while Iheanacho, a substitute in the second half, had a similar fate.
With the victory, Forest moves up to 13th place in the standings, five points above the bottom three. Leicester, which has now lost four straight Premier League games, is in 15th place, only two points above the relegation zone.
Iwobi (Everton), Joe Aribo (Southampton)
Iwobi returned to Everton’s starting line-up on Saturday but could not help the Toffees from losing 2-1 as James Ward-Prowse scored a stunning free-kick for Southampton who came from behind to win and increase the pressure on Frank Lampard.
After suffering a nasty injury against Manchester United and looking set to be out of action for long time, the Nigerian surprisingly returned to action against the Saints.
The former Arsenal player was in action for 90 minutes but couldn’t help his side’s dwindling fortune as they continue to languish at the bottom of the Premier League table.
Joe Aribo, however, was an unused substitute in his team’s triumph on the road.
Adeyemo, Kalu, Troost-Ekong, Okoye, Dele-Bashiru (Watford)
Tobi Adeyemo helped send Watford up to third in the Championship with his first senior goal in a win against strugglers Blackpool.
The 17-year-old of Nigerian descent, playing his first league game, grabbed the opener just four minutes after coming off the bench, slotting home from close range as he followed up a save from Blackpool goalkeeper Chris Maxwell which kept Matheus Martins out.
Ismaila Sarr sealed victory from the penalty spot after Watford’s Brazilian debutant Martins was brought down by Maxwell in the box.
William Troost-Ekong was handed a starting role in a back three but was replaced at half time.
While Maduka Okoye was an unused substitute, the duo Samuel Kalu and Tom Dele-Bashiru were left out of the matchday squad.
Adebayo (Luton Town), Dike, Ajayi (West Brom)
Elijah Adebayo and Daryl Dike were both on target for their respective teams Luton Town and West Bromwich Albion who clashed on Saturday with the Baggies fighting back from 2-0 down to win 3-2 and secure a crucial win.
Adebayo doubled Luton Town’s lead in the 10th minute after Carlton Morris had opened the scoring for the hosts three minutes earlier.
In an all-action first half Dike started the fightback when he chased down a back pass and Luton goalkeeper Ethan Horvath’s clearance cannoned off the Baggies striker into the net.
Jayson Molumby smashed in the leveller and two minutes later Conor Townsend fired in unmarked to complete the turnaround.
West Brom was in the relegation places at the start of November, but a ninth win in 11 league games under Carlos Corberan lifts them into play-off contention in sixth.
It also ended Luton’s three-match winning run and drops them to ninth, two points outside the play-off places.
Belgium
Sor, Onuachu (Genk)
Yira Sor found the back of the net in Genk’s 1-0 win over Zulte Waregem 1-0 at the Cegeka Arena on Saturday.
The 22-year-old, who recently joined the Belgian club from Slavia Prague, made his debut for the Limburg club as an 88th-minute substitute in a 3-1 win against Club Brugge last weekend and was surprisingly handed a starting berth on Saturday.
The Nigerian didn’t disappoint and got the only goal of the game just 10 minutes into the encounter as he outwitted two defenders and powered the ball inside the post to break the deadlock.
The striker, however, according to the statisticians at OPTA means the former Flying Eagles winger is the fastest KRC Genk player to score on his Jupiler Pro League starting debut since OPTA began collecting this data.
Paul Onuachu started the game from the bench and was brought on for the goal scorer with 18 minutes left on the clock. The SuperEagles striker didn’t have much to do as Genk held on to the slender win.
