Former international teammate and compatriot Ryan Nelsen feels Nottingham Forest striker Chris Wood is ‘in a specific level of player’. Striker Wood, 31, scored 14 Premier League goals last season, helping the Reds stay in the top tier for the third consecutive year.
Wood, a New Zealander, is head and shoulders above his compatriots when it comes to Kiwi Premier League glory. Indeed, Nelsen, formerly of Blackburn and Tottenham, would be considered among the better exporters, but Wood has 69 top-flight goals to his record and has taken on the duty of leading his national team as well – the centre striker has scored an astounding 38 goals in 87 appearances.
Wood, who cost Forest about £15 million to sign on a permanent basis from Newcastle United last summer, has already done a lot to repay the club’s investment and faith in him after being put on the margins of Eddie Howe’s Magpies side.
This time in Wood’s career followed an extended and exceptionally profitable spell at Burnley, where he scored double digits in the Premier League for four consecutive years.
For Nelsen, the career Wood has had and continues to have in a Garibaldi red shirt cannot be underestimated. Wood has never played for a top Premier League club, but has consistently produced for various sides who have needed his supply of goals to avoid relegation over an extended period of time.
“We might not see it again,” Nelsen warned the New Zealand Herald. “You may not see that from an Australian footballer again, or in larger football markets. Many countries may be unable to attract a player to this level of play, despite the fact that hundreds of millions of young boys around the world aspire to do what Chris has accomplished.
“Obviously, I hope it’s beaten. He has accomplished things that many felt were impossible for a New Zealand striker, but they are not because he has done so. He achieves essential goals, which are required. This is not the fourth goal in a 4-0 victory.
“You can see it in the British media; people genuinely admire what he has accomplished. Strikers can do it for a few years, but he has done it on a constant basis, and it is no fluke. Especially when your club is located at the bottom. The pressure is on; it’s intense down there, and he delivered.
“You can see it in the British media; people truly adore his achievements. Strikers can do it for a few years, but he has done it consistently, and it is not a fluke. Particularly if your club is located at the bottom. The pressure is on; it is fierce down there, and he delivers.
