When Coventry City walk out at the Emirates Stadium on Friday night, two Nigerians will be part of the club’s return to the Premier League after 25 years.
Frank Onyeka helped them get there. Taiwo Awoniyi arrived four days before the opening match.
It is an unforgiving place to begin. Arsenal are the defending champions, while Coventry are preparing for their first top-flight match since May 2001.
For Onyeka, Awoniyi and the other Nigerians starting the new Premier League season, however, success will not be measured by the occasion alone. Some are established regulars. Others need a comeback, a breakthrough or simply the opportunity to play.
More Read
Awoniyi needs more than a new shirt
Awoniyi’s move from Nottingham Forest to Coventry is one of the most important Nigerian transfers of the summer.
The striker has already shown that he can score in the Premier League. His 21 goals in 90 appearances included the run that helped Forest survive their first season back in the division.
Injuries and reduced playing time eventually pushed him to the edge of the team. Awoniyi appeared in 17 league matches last season but started only three. His final Forest campaign offered reminders of his quality without giving him the sustained run every striker needs.
Coventry have signed him permanently, but a transfer does not automatically solve the problem. Haji Wright, Ellis Simms and Brandon Thomas-Asante provide competition in attack, even if Wright begins the season injured.
At 29, Awoniyi is no longer arriving as a prospect. Coventry need goals to survive, and he needs a club willing to make him an important part of the attack.
The move gives him that opportunity. What he does with it will shape his Premier League future and his place in the Super Eagles.
Onyeka already belongs at Coventry
Onyeka’s transfer attracted less attention because he had already spent the second half of last season at Coventry.
That familiarity may make him one of the club’s most important players.
The midfielder made 14 appearances and scored once after joining on loan from Brentford. He helped Coventry win the Championship before completing a permanent move in June.
Onyeka struggled to become an automatic starter during his time at Brentford. Coventry should offer him a larger role, but the demands will also increase. The spaces close more quickly in the Premier League. Mistakes are punished more severely.
His energy, pressing and ability to cover ground will be needed, particularly in matches where Coventry spend long periods without the ball.
Friday’s meeting with Arsenal will provide an immediate test.
Iwobi, Bassey and Aina carry the established group
Alex Iwobi, Calvin Bassey and Ola Aina enter the season without questions about whether they belong at this level.
Iwobi has now made 320 Premier League appearances. He contributed four goals and three assists in 27 league matches last season and earned his 100th Nigeria cap in June.
His value to Fulham extends beyond the final pass or goal. Iwobi can play centrally or from either side, carries the ball through pressure and often provides the connection between midfield and attack.
Bassey has become an equally dependable figure at Craven Cottage. His strength and recovery pace are obvious, but his growing comfort in possession has made him more than a defender asked simply to stop attacks.
Fulham begin at home to Chelsea on Monday. Both Nigerians should again be central to the team.
Aina remains one of Nottingham Forest’s most reliable players. The full-back signed a contract until 2028 last year and has established himself on either side of the defence.
These are the Nigerians whose places are already secure. Their challenge is consistency across another demanding season.
Ajayi, Akintola and Akpom are back in the top flight
Hull City’s promotion has returned Semi Ajayi to the Premier League.
Ajayi made 33 appearances in the competition during West Bromwich Albion’s 2020/21 campaign. He now returns at 32, having started Hull’s play-off final victory over Middlesbrough and helped the team keep a clean sheet at Wembley.
Hull open against Manchester United on Saturday. For a promoted side likely to face difficult periods, Ajayi’s experience and organisation could be as important as any summer signing.
David Akintola arrives at this level by a less familiar route.
The winger has played in Denmark, Norway, Cyprus and Turkey and will begin his first Premier League season at 30. Promotion has given him an opportunity that appeared unlikely earlier in his career.
Whether he receives enough minutes to take it remains uncertain. Hull have several wide options, and the step from the Championship will demand greater discipline without the ball as well as better decisions in attack.
Chuba Akpom also returns to the division with Ipswich Town. His previous Premier League experience amounts to four substitute appearances for Arsenal, so this will be his first proper chance to establish himself at the level.
Akpom made 31 appearances during Ipswich’s promotion campaign before turning his loan from Ajax into a permanent contract until 2029.
He has already been the Championship’s leading scorer with Middlesbrough and has played Champions League football for Ajax. The missing entry on his career record is a productive Premier League season.
Yohanna is the breakthrough to follow
No Nigerian begins the season with more intrigue than Zadok Yohanna.
Brighton signed the 19-year-old from AIK after a rapid rise in Sweden. He produced five goals and four assists in 18 league and cup appearances before agreeing a five-year contract with the Premier League club.
Yohanna has already been placed in Brighton’s first-team squad and given the number 36 shirt. That does not guarantee regular Premier League football. Brighton have several attacking options, and the club have publicly acknowledged that he will require time to adjust.
Patience should not be mistaken for a lack of ambition.
Yohanna’s pace, close control and willingness to attack defenders made him one of Sweden’s most exciting young players. Brighton have an excellent record of creating opportunities for talented prospects once they are ready.
His first target should not be a fixed number of goals. It should be earning enough trust to remain around the senior team when the competition for places becomes serious.
Hull defender Calvin Okike is further from an immediate breakthrough but also deserves attention.
The 18-year-old was Hull’s academy player of the season and signed his first professional contract in July. He then spent much of pre-season with the first team.
Okike may begin with the Under-21s, and a loan could eventually offer the best route to regular football. His progress matters because Nigerian centre-backs reaching Premier League academies and first-team environments remain relatively rare.
© Bold Sports Media. All rights reserved. If sharing, kindly credit Bold Sports as the source and include a link to the original post. Unauthorised use is prohibited.
