Taiwo Awoniyi

Taiwo Awoniyi Biography / Profile

Taiwo Micheal Awoniyi was born on August 12th, 1997 in Ilorin, Kwara state, Nigeria. He is a Nigerian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Premier League club Liverpool. He has also featured for the Nigerian team at age grade competitions.

Taiwo Awoniyi Age

Taiwo Awoniyi is 26 years old.

Taiwo Awoniyi Early Life

Born to Mr., Solomon Awoniyi, a retired Police Officer, Taiwo grew up in Ilorin where he had his basic education. He attended GDSS Airport in Ilorin from where he graduated in 2010. Although his parents wanted him to become a medical doctor, Taiwo developed keen interest in football early on and decided to become a professional player. The striker used to get beat by his father who wanted to discourage him from playing football. After much disagreements with his parents, he eventually enrolled into the Imperial Soccer Academy in Ogun state from where he graduated in 2012. He also played at the Copacocacola in London and was part of the Nigeria National U-15 team.

Taiwo Awoniyi Career

Awoniyi rose to prominence at the FIFA U17 World Cup in 2013. At the tournament in The United Arab Emirates, he was part of the Nigerian team that claimed the title thanks in no small part to his four goals. The prolific striker netted the only two goals of the game as Uruguay were vanquished in the quarter-finals before bagging a crucial opener against Sweden in the next round. Although he did not get on the score sheet in the final, the former Imperial Academy starlet featured in all 90 minutes of a 3-0 success against Mexico.

With the team, he could only reach the round of 16 in the U20 edition of the World Cup two years later, but Awoniyi again showed his promise. The young striker bagged two goals in a group-stage win over Hungary before his country were knocked out by Germany. Prior to that, the team won the U-20 African Championship in the same year.

Taiwo arrived at Liverpool in August 2015 with a burgeoning reputation forged through his exploits with Nigeria's youth international teams. It was in Germany where his first taste of European football arrived as, after signing for Liverpool, he immediately departed for a loan spell with second-tier FSV Frankfurt to build up first-team experience.

The Kwara born ace was off on his travels again in August 2016 when he joined Dutch side NEC Nijmegen on a season-long loan deal, scoring three goals throughout the term. A third successive agreement of the same kind saw Awoniyi move to Royal Excel Mouscron in Belgium for the duration of the 2017/2018 campaign.

Taiwo Awoniyi Personal Life

On June 17th, 2017, Awoniyi wedded his partner Taiwo Jesudun in a white wedding ceremony held in Ilorin. The couple who have been together for some time before had their engagement and traditional wedding on June 16th in Kabba. Chidera Ezeh, Godwin Saviour and other former Golden Eaglets and Flying Eagles teammates of Awoniyi were some of the notable football stars that attended the wedding at the God’s Grace Foundation Church in Ilorin.