Taiwo Awoniyi was on target as Nottingham Forest continued their impressive pre-season preparations with a comfortable 3-0 victory over Blackburn Rovers in Portugal on Wednesday.
The Super Eagles striker came off the bench after the break and wasted little time making an impact, finding the back of the net just five minutes into the second half as Forest secured their second successive pre-season win.
Fellow Nigerian Ola Aina started the friendly at right wing-back, while Igor Jesus spearheaded the attack in a strong starting lineup named by manager Oliver Glasner.
Forest had to wait until the closing stages of the first half to break the deadlock, with Igor Jesus opening the scoring in the 40th minute after a tight contest.
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Glasner changed his entire team at half-time, introducing 11 fresh players, but the changes only increased Forest’s intensity. Arnaud Kalimuendo-Muinga doubled the advantage early in the second half before Awoniyi added a third moments later to put the Premier League side firmly in control.
Blackburn also made wholesale changes in the 62nd minute, replacing all 11 players, but the Championship outfit struggled to trouble Forest, who comfortably saw out the game while keeping a clean sheet.
Speaking to Forest TV after the match, Glasner expressed his satisfaction with his side’s display and highlighted both the positives and areas for improvement.
“Very good test again. Credit to the players for the work rate especially, and we scored very nice goals,” Glasner said.
“It’s just pre-season but winning 3-0 against a Championship side is always very positive. We could see many positive aspects in the game and also we could see plenty of things we would work on in the next couple of days and weeks.
“Every win, every clean sheet helps us in getting more and more confident.”
Awoniyi’s goal will be another encouraging sign as the Nigerian striker continues to build fitness and sharpness ahead of the new Premier League season.
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