Asisat Oshoala: Nigeria striker credits Barcelona squad for Pichichi award

Nigeria striker Asisat Oshoala has given the credit to her Barcelona women team-mates after she won the Pichichi, the prize given to the top scorer in the Spanish league.

She shares the prize with Madrid CFF forward Geyse Ferreira, who played eight more games than Oshoala in the Primera Liga Iberdrola.

Oshoala, 27, is Africa’s most decorated female football and becomes the first woman from the continent to claim Spain’s golden boot.

“It’s obviously been a team effort to get here, and l can only thank my team-mates and everyone at the club for this achievement,” she said.

“We’ve been working hard all season and cannot stop now because we have another big one ahead of us.”

Oshoala and holders Barcelona meet seven-time champions Lyon in the Women’s Champions League final in Turin on Saturday.

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⚡ @AsisatOshoala pic.twitter.com/kPiEekKy6j

— FC Barcelona Femení (@FCBfemeni) May 15, 2022

After their historic league campaign which saw them pick up maximum points with 30 wins in 30 matches, Oshoala is targeting another milestone with Jonatan Giraldez’s team.

“The focus of everyone has shifted from a league title celebration to preparing for a massive game in Turin,” she added.

After that big night in Italy, Barcelona will then shift attention to El Clasico against Real Madrid in the Copa de la Reina semi-final on 25 May as they continue their quest for an historic quadruple.

Oshoala bangs drum for Nigeria in Spain

Oshoala has now scored 81 goals in 104 appearances for Barca, and has signed a deal to remain with the Spanish giants until the end of the 2023-24 campaign.

She joined the Spanish outfit from Chinese champions Dalian Quanjian in January 2019, initially on loan, before agreeing a permanent switch five months later.

The former FC Robo and Rivers Angels star had moved to the Far East in February 2017 from English side Arsenal, with whom she won the Women’s FA Cup at Wembley in 2016.

She finished as the Chinese Women’s Super League top scorer in 2017 with 12 goals to help her club to the title same year.

Oshoala, who began her European career at Liverpool, won her third Women’s Africa Cup of Nations with the Super Falcons in Ghana in 2018, scoring three goals as Nigeria lifted the title for a ninth time.

Oshoala won the Confederation of African Football’s Women’s Player of the Year award for a fourth time in 2020 – equalling the record of fellow Nigerian Perpetua Nkwocha.

The maiden BBC Women’s Footballer of the Year winner helped Nigeria reach the last 16 at the 2019 Women’s World Cup in France and will be hoping to lead her country to qualification for the 2023 World Cup and a record-extending 10th Nations Cup title in Morocco in July.

The West Africans have been paired with South Africa, who the Super Falcons beat on penalties to lift the trophy four years ago, in the group stage of the tournament.

Debutants Burundi and Botswana complete the line-up in Group C, with Nigeria aiming to win a fourth successive Nations Cup title.