Rave reviews are trailing Brighton Hove Albion of England defender, Leon Aderemi Balogun, after scoring as a substitute in his side’s a 3-1 win over Crystal Palace.
In Tuesday’s match, Balogun became the second fastest sub to score in the EPL this season, won four duels, made five clearances and achieved two of three tackles.
Footballlive.ng reports that it was a major step forward for the Super Eagles defender, who has only one English Premier League start and played just three other games for Brighton since arriving from SV Mainz of Germany as a free agent.
Balogun made the best of a rare opportunity, after The Seagulls coach, Chris Hughton was forced to bolster his defence on the half-hour mark, after Shane Duffy was shown a straight red card for headbutting Patrick van Aanholt.
Balogun then made hay with his very first touch of the ball, as he fired home low from a set-piece to double the home team’s lead 25 seconds after he came off the bench.
Balogun’s goal is the second fastest goal scored by a substitute this season, behind Daniel Sturridge who found the net 24 seconds after his introduction against West Ham on the opening round of the season.
The quickest goal by a substitute in Premier League history was scored by Sammy Ameobi, who struck just eight seconds after his introduction in Newcastle United’s 2-1 win at Tottenham Hotspur in October 2014.
Another Nigerian star, Yakubu Aiyegbeni is also on the cards, as he got on the scoresheet for Everton after playing only 18 seconds as a sub against Blackburn Rovers in the 2009-10 season.
