Taiwo Awoniyi was crucial to Nottingham Forest denting Chelsea a win in their New Year’s day fixture according to Jamie Redknapp.
Awoniyi did not score, but the Forward deployed more centrally in the second half as against his wide play in the previous half put more pressure on Chelsea’s defence Redknapp suggested during his punditry duty for the game.
Chelsea took the lead against bottom side Forest in their Premier League clash at the City Ground stadium.
Raheem Sterling smashed home a loose ball from close range to put Chelsea ahead in the 16th minute.
However, the lead was canceled in the second half from a Sergie Aurier (68′) strike and it earned Steve Cooper’s side a valuable point in their relegation battle.
Speaking on the impact of the Nigerian Forward, Jamie Redknapp said switching Awoniyi from a wide Forward to a more central position caused problems for the visitors.
‘Awoniyi had very little effectiveness playing out wide. He was playing in a kind of two-man attack, but it didn’t work well,’ the former Spurs man stated.
‘However in the second half after Cooper moves him more centrally, you saw how he made Thiago Silva uncomfortable with his strength and pace. Koulibaly (Kalidou) couldn’t cope with him either.’
‘That was the biggest difference in the second half and it changed the game,’
Taiwo Awoniyi featured for Eighty-eight minutes before he was replaced, but Emmanuel Dennis was an unused substitute.
Forest moved to 18th on the standings, bouncing back after the 3-0 defeat to Manchester United.
