Nottingham Forest were beaten 5-0 by Arsenal at the weekend and some Taiwo Awoniyi stats showcase where they’re getting things wrong.
Naturally, the Reds were never expected to get anything at the Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal haven’t lost on home soil this season and have lost just once during the entire 2022/23 campaign.
But, there was an element that Forest threw the towel in and that simply won’t do.
If the Reds aren’t going to have much of the ball in these types of away games then they have to be more efficient with it.
In Awoniyi they have a player who can hold it up or chase after it into the channels.
On Sunday, some statistics from Who Scored highlighted that the Reds simply didn’t get the striker into the game enough.
He touched the ball just 22 times during the defeat and was substituted in the 63rd minute.
The Nigerian talisman finished the contest with a pass-success ratio of 87.5% which does tell a bit of a story.
It would suggest that Awoniyi is holding it up and laying it off quite nicely when his teammates do get him involved.
Forest simply don’t do it often enough though and certain players have to start being braver.
Awoniyi stats show where Forest are going wrong
Forest scored just two goals at home in October and have scored just once away all season.
As a result, there is a clear indication that not enough goals are being scored.
Awoniyi is Forest’s top goalscorer and more has to be done to get him in positions to add to his three goals this season.
If Forest are going to soak up possession on their travels, they have to adopt a brave approach when they look to counter.
Giving Awoniyi just 22 touches in any game this season is just ridiculous.
Strikers are being starved of service. As a result, Forest must show more courage in their two home games before the World Cup.
Awoniyi deserves a run in the team but the challenge for his teammates and Cooper is to make sure he’s involved more often.
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