SAN FRANCISCO, November 03, (THEWILL) – In the Monday night football games played across Europe, a pair of Super Eagles players were vital to their teams’ victories in La Liga and in the English Premier League.
It was a night of debut goals for Villarreal’s right midfielder Samuel Chukwueze and Fulham’s left bank Ola Aina in Spain and England respectively.
Chukwueze scored the opener for Villarreal in their 2-0 win over Real Valladolid in La Liga, while Aina was the second goal-scorer as Fulham recorded an identical scoreline victory over West Brom for their first win since securing promotion back to the Premier League.
Chukwueze goal came in the 21st minute off of an assist from a cross by Spanish left-back Alphonso Pedraza. Villarreal defender Pau Torres doubled the lead in the 37th minute and sealed the victory for the Yellow Submarines.
As a result, Unai Emery’s men moved up to third on La Liga standings and now have 15 points from the eight games played this season. They are behind Real Sociedad and Real Madrid who occupy the first and second slots respectively.
The 21-year-of midfielder scored only three league goals last season but THEWILL hopes the Nigerian will improve on that with all the games left in the 2020/2021 season.
On Aina’s part, Monday night’s goal was a significant achievement. It brought an end to his five-year wait for a first Premier League goal.
And it was a splendid effort as well. The Fulham defender exchanged some crisp passes with teammates Serbian striker Aleksandar Mitrovic and Decordova-Reid, from which Mitrovic set Aina up.
The defender created some space outside the area, before unleashing a thunderbolt into the top left corner from the edge of the area. Sam Johnstone, in goal for the Baggies, stood no chance.
And the hard-fought win lifts the club from 19th to 17th on the log with a tie against David Moyes’ West Ham next on their schedule.
Fortunately for the Super Eagles, the duo are part of Gernot Rohr’s squad to contest against Sierra Leone in this month’s double-header Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers in Benin City and Freetown.
THEWILL believes the coach will be pleased with the form of invited players ahead of the pair of games against the Leone Stars.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
