By Monsurah Olatunji
Former Liverpool stars and pundits, goalkeeper Rachel Brown-Finnis and midfielder Don Hutchison, have praised Ola Aina for the remarkable accuracy of his goal in Nottingham Forest’s 2-0 victory over Brentford on Saturday.
The 27-year-old full-back scored the opening goal in the 38th minute, finding the bottom left corner with a precise finish.
The goal came after a swift counterattack, with Neco Williams, assisted by Hudson-Odoi, delivering a low cross that bypassed Chris Wood before finding the unmarked Aina at the far post to fire past goalkeeper Mark Flekken.
While Aina’s clinical finish was the highlight, it was the build-up play that also drew significant praise from pundits.
“Fantastic finish from Aina but also a fantastic decision for Wood to let it run from Williams’ cross. He directs it back across the goalkeeper into the bottom corner, and that is a great finish,” former Liverpool goalkeeper Rachel Brown-Finnis remarked during her analysis on Final Score.
Premier League pundit Don Hutchison also lauded the sequence, saying, “Good move. Hudson-Odoi started the move, and then he slotted Neco Williams the ball. Chris Wood was trying to finish it off, but it went through his legs — then a very composed finish from the full-back.”
Aina’s goal played a pivotal role in helping Forest secure the three points, further highlighting his important contribution to the team’s strong performance.
Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. He began his career at Goal.com in February 2014, where he served as an African women's football correspondent for nearly eight years. During his tenure at Goal.com, Samuel covered major events such as three Women's Africa Cup of Nations (2016, 2018, 2022) and the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada plus 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. His work at Goal.com earned him widespread acclaim, particularly for his in-depth profiles of African football stars, notably Asisat Oshoala, whose rise he documented from her early years to her breakthrough at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2014. Prior to his role at Goal.com, Samuel freelanced for various print and broadcast media outlets in Nigeria, including Graphics Newspaper, Radio Nigeria, Grace FM, and Savid Newspaper. His extensive experience and expertise led to his appointment to the Nigeria Football Federation's Standing Committee on Women's Football Development from 2016 to 2018. Since February 2018, Samuel has been the Social Media Manager for Nigeria's women's national teams.In 2019, Samuel joined the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as a women's football content contributor and was promoted to Women's Football Editor in 2021. His contributions to women's football continued as he worked as a Media Consultant for Content Creation and Editorials at the 2022 CAF Women's Champions League. Currently, Samuel also serves as the spokesman for the Nigeria Women Football League, further solidifying his influence and dedication to the growth of women's football in Africa.
