Nigeria and Nottingham Forest forward Emmanuel Dennis has officially fallen out of favor at the City Ground.
The £20 million signing from Watford in 2022, once a Premier League star, now finds himself on the surplus list, excluded from the first-team squad.
The sharp decline of Dennis’ career at Forest mirrors the struggles of other Nigerian footballers who have burst onto the scene with spectacular seasons only to fade away shortly after.
Afrik-Foot takes you through Emmanuel Dennis and three other one-season wonders of Nigerian descent who captured the spotlight briefly but struggled to maintain their brilliance.
Emmanuel Dennis
Emmanuel Dennis arrived at Watford in 2021 after a difficult spell in Belgium and Germany. Many doubted his ability to thrive in the Premier League, but the Nigerian forward quickly silenced critics, having a phenomenal season for the Hornets.
He scored 10 goals and provided five assists in 30 league games, making him one of Watford’s most impactful players.
Unfortunately, his efforts couldn’t save Watford from relegation, but they did earn him a £20 million move to Nottingham Forest in 2022. At Forest, however, Dennis has been a forgotten man.
The former Super Eagles forward's last appearance for the club came in May 2023 against Crystal Palace. Since then, he’s been loaned out to Basaksehir and even returned to Watford, but a permanent move has remained elusive.
The Athletic recently reported that Dennis is the only senior player excluded from Forest’s first-team squad, making it clear that his future lies away from the club.
Despite his early promise, Dennis’ career now appears at a crossroads, leaving many to wonder if his Watford heroics were a fleeting moment of brilliance.
Simy Nwankwo
Simy Nwankwo had an unforgettable 2020/21 season with Crotone, scoring 20 goals in Serie A. This remarkable achievement tied him with Ciro Immobile as the league’s fifth-highest scorer that season.
The Lagos-born striker’s tally also set a new record for the most goals by a Nigerian in a single campaign across Europe’s top five leagues, surpassing Yakubu Aiyegbeni’s 17-goal feat.
Simy’s performances couldn’t save Crotone from relegation, but he left his mark, finishing his Serie A career with 30 goals, eclipsing Obafemi Martins as the highest-scoring Nigerian in the league. However, since that season, Simy’s career has spiraled downward. Across the last three seasons, he has failed to score more than five league goals per campaign.
Now 32, Simy is a shadow of the player who once terrorized Serie A defenses.
Gift Orban
Gift Orban was tipped as one of Europe’s most promising young strikers after an extraordinary 2022/23 season with KAA Gent, where he scored 20 goals in 22 matches.
His prolific form caught the attention of Olympique Lyon, who signed him for €14 million in January 2024 as a long-term replacement for Alexandre Lacazette.
Orban’s transition to Ligue 1, however, has been anything but smooth. The arrival of Georges Mikautadze in 2024/25 has also relegated Orban to the fringes of the squad. This season, the 22-year-old has found himself ostracized, unable to replicate the form that made him a sensation in Belgium.
Gbenga Okunowo
Long before Dennis, Simy, or Orban, there was Gbenga Okunowo. The Nigerian right-back joined Barcelona from Shooting Stars in 1997 and became part of the first team under Louis van Gaal during the 1998/99 season, helping the Catalan giants win La Liga.
Despite showing promise, Okunowo’s career at Barcelona was short-lived. Loan spells at Benfica and Badajoz followed, and by 2001, he had left the club permanently.
What ensued was a nomadic career that saw him play in Greece, Romania, Albania, Ukraine, and even the Maldives, before returning to Nigeria in 2012 to play for Sunshine Stars.
