Wikki Tourists striker Jonathan Mairiga is chasing joint-leaders Godwin Obaje and Joseph Arumala with five matches left in the NPFL campaign, convinced he can score five more goals to clinch the golden boot.
Jonathan Mairiga has set himself a clear target for the final stretch of the NPFL 2025/2026 season: score five goals in five games and win the top scorers’ crown with 14 strikes. The Wikki Tourists forward currently sits on nine goals, two behind joint-leaders Godwin Obaje of Rangers and Joseph Arumala of Ikorodu City, who both have 11.
Speaking to FootballInNigeria.com.ng on Friday, Mairiga made no attempt to hide his ambitions. “I believe I can win the highest goalscorers’ award,” he said. “I’ve scored nine goals, two behind the two leaders, but I believe I can score up to five goals in the remaining matches of the season.”
The Math Behind the Mission
Overhauling two players who each have a two-goal cushion, while also maintaining his own scoring rate, is a tall order with the clock winding down. But Mairiga’s confidence appears rooted in form rather than blind hope. For NPFL fans keen on backing the golden boot race, grab the Bet9ja’s YOHAIG code before the weekend’s fixtures kick off.
Wikki Tourists face Bayelsa United at the Samson Siasia Stadium in Yenagoa on Matchday 34, and Mairiga sees that away trip as the starting point for his final push. “Yes, I think it could start this weekend, by the grace of God. Nothing is impossible. We’re going to Yenagoa with the mindset of getting the three points and, hopefully, it won’t be impossible for me to score,” the forward added.
Reading the Golden Boot Table
The race for the NPFL’s highest individual honour has been tight all season. Obaje has been among the most reliable forwards in the league for years, while Arumala’s emergence at Ikorodu City has been one of the stories of the campaign. For Mairiga to leapfrog both men, he would need to outscore them by at least three goals across the remaining five rounds — a feat that would require two or three multi-goal games. Fans can follow the race closely on Bet9ja promotion code pages for the best new-user offers heading into the final rounds.
Wikki Tourists have their own motivations beyond individual glory heading into the season’s closing stages. The Bauchi-based club will want to finish as strongly as possible in the league standings, and a prolific Mairiga gives them a genuine weapon going into every remaining fixture.
Five Games, One Goal
If Mairiga delivers on his word, he would become one of the more dramatic golden boot winners in recent NPFL history. Few players have come from two goals back with five games to spare and overhauled the leaders. But the NPFL’s final weeks have a habit of producing exactly that kind of drama. New Bet9ja users tracking the run-in can check the YOHAIG promo code before registering ahead of the weekend.
Mairiga’s stated ambition says a great deal about his mentality. Whether Bayelsa United in Yenagoa on Matchday 34 becomes the first step toward that golden boot, or merely a strong away performance in a tight finish to the league, Nigerian football fans will be watching.
📌 Did You Know?
- Wikki Tourists are based in Bauchi and are one of the most travelled clubs in the NPFL, with the “Tourists” nickname referencing their consistent away campaigns across the country.
- The Samson Siasia Stadium in Yenagoa, home to Bayelsa United, has a capacity of around 12,000 and is one of the more hostile away venues for visiting NPFL sides.
- Godwin Obaje has been a consistent NPFL scorer across multiple seasons for Rangers International and is considered one of the league’s most reliable domestic strikers.
- A player scoring 14 goals in a single NPFL season would represent an above-average tally for the golden boot in recent editions of the competition.
- Ikorodu City are a relatively young NPFL club, having risen through the pyramid in recent years, making Joseph Arumala’s push for the top scorer award particularly notable.
- The NPFL 2025/2026 season features 20 clubs competing across a 38-matchday campaign, with five games remaining at the time of Mairiga’s interview.
- Wikki Tourists have historically been a strong mid-table side in the NPFL, with their most prominent former player, Daniel Amokachi, having started his senior club career at the club in the late 1980s.
