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Karen Carney hails Gibbs-White’s tribute to Taiwo Awoniyi after goal celebration

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Karen Carney hails Gibbs-White’s tribute to Taiwo Awoniyi after goal celebration

By Monsurah Olatunji

England Lionesses legend Karen Carney has praised Morgan Gibbs-White for his heartfelt goal celebration dedicated to injured teammate Taiwo Awoniyi during Nottingham Forest’s 2-1 victory over West Ham United on Saturday, May 17, 2025.

Gibbs-White opened the scoring in the 11th minute and celebrated by lifting a shirt bearing Awoniyi’s name and number, a touching tribute to the Nigerian striker who is currently recovering from a serious abdominal injury.

Awoniyi sustained the injury in Forest’s previous match against Leicester City, colliding with the goalpost. He underwent emergency surgery and was briefly placed in an induced coma but is now recovering.

Speaking on Premier League Productions, Carney commended the gesture, saying, “It’s a shocking decision from the goalkeeper… Like Stuart said there, Gibbs-White isn’t going to miss. And a nice celebration for Awoniyi — hopefully he’s on the recovery as well.”

In addition to Gibbs-White’s tribute, the entire Forest squad wore warm-up shirts emblazoned with Awoniyi’s name and number, accompanied by the message: “We’re all with you Taiwo.”

Awoniyi expressed his gratitude on social media, stating: “This season has been one of the most difficult of my career but through it all, I have felt the love… With the grace of God, I am grateful to still be here, to still be fighting, to still be smiling, and to be in good spirits.”

Nottingham Forest’s recent victory against West Ham pushed them to seventh place in the Premier League standings, continuing their push for European qualification.

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Samuel Ahmadu
Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. On the back of domestic engagement since 2008, he began his international career journey 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.
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