Nigerian forward Victor Boniface is making waves in the football world. Fresh off his Bundesliga victory with Bayer Leverkusen, the 23-year-old Super Eagles striker has more reasons to celebrate.
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Boniface has been on fire, scoring 18 goals and providing 10 assists in 27 games across various competitions for Xabi Alonso’s team. Impressive, right? But here’s the twist: he could have scored even more if not for a three-month injury layoff that forced him to miss crucial matches, including the Africa Cup of Nations where Nigeria finished as runners-up.
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Recently, the International Centre for Sports Studies (CIES) Football Observatory Group recognized Boniface’s outstanding performance. They analyzed outfield players in six critical areas: ground defense, distribution, take-on, chance creation, finishing, and aerial play.
And guess what? When it comes to finishing in the big five European leagues, Victor Boniface outshone some big names. He ranked higher than Manchester City’s Erling Haaland and Liverpool’s Darwin Nunez. Not only that, but he also surpassed leading Serie A goalscorer Lautaro Martinez.
Even fellow African striker Serhou Guirassy (who plays for VfB Stuttgart in the Bundesliga) was ranked below Boniface. The only players considered better finishers were Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Deniz Undav (VfB Stuttgart), and Kylian Mbappe (PSG).
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