Super Eagles striker Taiwo Awoniyi looks set to leave Nottingham Forest and return to German Bundesliga football, with FSV Mainz 05 said to be leading the pursuit in the January transfer window, according to multiple reports.
Awoniyi, 28, has struggled for regular playing time at Forest this season and has been dropped down the pecking order, featuring sparingly in the Premier League and omitted from the club’s Europa League squad. Manager Sean Dyche has confirmed Forest are targeting a new striker, a move that further clouds the Nigerian forward’s future at the English club.
Bundesliga side Mainz 05 — currently battling relegation are in talks with Forest over a possible loan move for Awoniyi, who previously played in Germany and remains familiar with the league’s style and demands. Interest in the striker stems from his past success in the Bundesliga and the added incentive of a reunion with former Union Berlin coach Urs Fischer, who now manages Mainz.
Forest signed Awoniyi from Union Berlin in 2022 for a club-record fee, but the Nigerian has found starts hard to come by this season. Mainz’s interest could offer a lifeline a chance to reignite his career with regular first-team football in a league where he previously enjoyed his best scoring form.
EDITORIAL
Football careers are rarely linear narratives, and few players embody that truth more vividly than Taiwo Awoniyi. Once the talismanic figure spearheading Union Berlin’s rise and earning a high-profile transfer to England, he now finds himself at a crossroads, looking eastward back to the familiar battlegrounds of the Bundesliga.
Awoniyi’s story has been one of peaks and plateaus. At Union, he transformed from promising talent to dependable scorer, a forward whose blend of strength, movement and finishing made him a standout in Germany’s top flight. That form earned him an £18-20m move to Nottingham Forest, a club eager for Premier League impact and European ambition. Yet the reality of elite football is unforgiving competition for places, tactical shifts, and the slightest dip in rhythm can redefine roles overnight.
This season has seen Awoniyi’s minutes diminish, opportunities dwindle and confidence tested. In such circumstances, a return to Germany is not merely a transfer it is a recalibration of purpose. The Bundesliga, with its tactical demand and physical intensity, once brought out the best in him. A potential reunion with Urs Fischer the coach who believed in his talent at Union Berlin is poetic rather than coincidental chemistry between player and manager can often unlock renewed performance beyond what contract paragraphs articulate.
For Forest, allowing Awoniyi to leave whether on loan or permanent terms is a pragmatic acknowledgment of the footballing cycle a player must play to thrive, and minutes away from the pitch serve neither club nor striker. For Awoniyi, a spell at Mainz could be both redemption and reinvention, a chance to remind a familiar league of what he once accomplished there.
In the modern game, where statistics and scouting profiles dominate transfer desks, there remains a human element the player seeking to belong and to make his mark. Awoniyi’s potential return to Germany underscores this truth. Football, after all, is as much about finding the right stage as it is about scoring goals upon it.
DID YOU KNOW?
- Mainz 05 are leading the January pursuit of Taiwo Awoniyi, hoping to bring him back to the Bundesliga on loan this winter.
- Awoniyi has found first-team opportunities limited at Nottingham Forest this season, making only a handful of Premier League appearances and being left out of the club’s Europa League squad.
- Forest manager Sean Dyche has confirmed the club is looking to sign a new striker, potentially pushing Awoniyi further down the pecking order.
- A move to Mainz would represent a reunion with coach Urs Fischer, who worked with Awoniyi previously at Union Berlin in Germany.
- Awoniyi joined Nottingham Forest from Union Berlin in 2022 for a then-club-record fee, marking a significant step up in his career.
