Taiwo Awoniyi scored his first Premier League goal of the season as UEFA Champions League hopefuls Nottingham Forest started 2025 in the same vein as their outstanding end to last year with a 3-0 thumping of troubled Wolverhampton Wanderers on Monday.
On Sunday, Amad Diallo extended his fine start to life under Ruben Amorim at Manchester United by equalising for the Red Devils -- cancelling out Mohamed Salah's penalty -- as they drew 2-2 vs. fierce rivals Liverpool at Anfield.
This season is surpassing all expectations for Nuno Espirito Santo and Forest, who moved level with second-places Arsenal, on 40 points, with their 12th victory of the campaign.
Only league leaders Liverpool have recorded more victories than Forest, who are defying the doubters after their 17th-placed finish last term and have now won six consecutive top-flight matches for the first time since 1966-67.
Awoniyi had been -- at best -- a peripheral figure while his Forest teammates earned plaudits during the first half of the 24-25 season.
Now 27, Awoniyi featured in 14 of Forest's 19 league games during the latter part of 2024, but he had started only twice and failed to score in his numerous cameos and stoppage-time showings.
Awoniyi made the most of his latest cameo, however; playing for the final two minutes of the game and scoring Forest's third goal to remind Nuno that he remains a capable option at this level.
The visitors were already two goals up through Morgan Gibbs-White and Chris Wood when, with Wolves toiling, their confidence sapping away, Forest caught them on the break again; James Ward-Prowse cut the ball back for Awoniyi to finish beyond José Sá.
Awoniyi had not scored since the 2-0 victory over West Ham United on Feb. 17, 2024; indeed the forward had taken just six shots this season before stepping onto the field for his late intervention against Wolves.
The Nigerian appeared emotional after scoring, dropping to his knees in celebration, covering his face with his shinpads that bore a Bible verse from the Book of James, and perhaps hinting at some of the frustration he may have experienced after falling behind the irrepressible Wood in the pecking order this term.
It's been easy to forget that Awoniyi was once Forest's record transfer signing, when he joined from 1. FC Union Berlin after a 15-goal Bundesliga season, and was influential in the 2022-23 campaign with 10 goals as then manager Steve Cooper's side beat the drop.
Forest, who are just six points behind Liverpool having played a game more, face Luton Town in the FA Cup this weekend so Awoniyi could have an opportunity to build on his return to goal-scoring form after a 324-day drought.
Awoniyi's Nigeria teammate Ola Aina also featured for Forest, and he was denied a penalty when his cross struck Wolves' Algerian Rayan Aït-Nouri on the arm, only for the VAR to adjudge that the defender's arm had been in a natural position.
This was also a weekend to remember for Awoniyi's fellow Nigerians Victor Osimhen, Ethan Nwaneri and Emanuel Emegha.
In Turkey, Osimhen needed just 10 minutes to open his account for 2025 when he netted an early penalty in Galatasaray's 2-1 victory over Goztepe in Super Lig action.
The goal was Osimhen's 10th in 12 league outings -- only two players are ahead of him in the scoring charts -- and it set Gala on their way to a win that moved them up to 47 points, eight clear of second-placed Fenerbahce.
The goal comes amid ongoing rumours linking Osimhen with a move to the Premier League -- specifically Manchester United -- although it remains to be seen whether any potential move could happen as soon as January.
Nwaneri, born in London but eligible for the Super Eagles via his parents, experienced a mixed weekend; the 17-year-old scored his second Premier League goal but was then withdrawn after picking up an injury against Brighton & Hove Albion.
Impressing on the right flank, standing in for the sidelined Bukayo Saka, Nwaneri latched onto a fine through-ball from Mikel Merino before firing beyond Bart Verbruggen in the 16th minute.
He was booked for time-wasting before the half was out, and didn't reappear for the second '45 after sustaining a muscle strain.
"Unfortunately, he has picked up an injury and he is going to be out for a few weeks," Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said on Monday. "I am gutted for him because the injury is going to stop [him] playing games for us, but it is another step in that development phase that he is in. I am really happy with the way he is going."
Nedum Onuoha breaks down Arsenal's recent fixtures and what the club needs to do to catch Liverpool at the top of the table.
Four years older than Nwaneri, towering Dutch-Togolese-Nigerian forward Emegha has taken his game to new heights for Strasbourg in Ligue 1.
Despite injury problems, he's hand a hand in six goals in 11 matches, compared with nine in 28 across the entirety of last term.
Sunday's visit of Auxerre was just the youngster's third league outing since mid October, but he weighed in with an assist and an 87th-minute goal as Strasbourg won 3-1 to climb five points clear of the dropzone.
Finally, to Anfield, where Salah, for once, wasn't the last African player smiling following a Premier League showdown.
Manchester United took an unexpected 1-0 lead at Anfield, but Cody Gakpo equalised then Salah put Liverpool ahead 20 minutes from time.
Salah scored from the spot after Matthijs de Ligt was deemed to have handled in the box, but United goalkeeper André Onana will rue his failure to deny the Egyptian after diving the right way.
Diallo has been the one ray of light during Amorim's testing reign, with the Ivorian's late winner against Manchester City proving to be the highlight of United's troubled existence since the Portuguese head coach replaced Erik ten Hag.
Gab Marcotti explains the factors behind Manchester United's much-improved performance in their 2-2 draw at Liverpool.
He missed a chance at Anfield, when he should have done better after being picked out in the six-yard box by Diogo Dalot having evaded Liverpool's attentions; off-balance and caught out by the ball's trajectory, he could only watch as his header flew wide of Alisson 's post.
But he made no mistake in the 80th minute, when he met Alejandro Garnacho's cross and touched the ball beyond the Brazil goalkeeper from close range to mute the growing scepticism about Amorim's appointment after a miserable December.
Salah remains atop the Premier League scoring charts, with 18 goals in 19 matches, but Diallo has had a hand in nine goals (scored three, six assists) in 18 league outings, and is comfortably enjoying his best season in the top flight.
Given Diallo's form under Amorim, it's not beyond the realms of possibility that he eclipses his career-best tally (14 goals scored) for Sunderland in the Championship in 2022-23.
His late strike saw him become the first United player since Robin van Persie in 2012-13 to score against Liverpool and Manchester City away in a single season, and he is proving himself to be a player who rises to the big occasions.