Slavia Prague manager Jindrich Trpisovsky has showered encomium on Peter Olayinka following his impressive performance against Bayer Leverkusen on Thursday.
The 24-year-old attacker scored the only goal that handed his side a 1-0 victory over the Bundesliga club in a Europa League game.
The Nigeria international started from the bench for the Red and Whites and made a significant contribution in the encounter.
The forward replaced Oscar Dorley moments after the hour mark and scored the goal that made the difference on the night.
Olayinka fired home past goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky after he was set up by Nicolae Stanciu, who earlier missed a penalty.
Trpisovsky has praised the Super Eagles attacker and revealed why he did not start the match at Sinobo Stadium.
“I must say thanks to Peter Olayinka. Normally he would play in the starting eleven, but he wasn’t ready after his recovery from Covid,” Trpisovsky said in a post-match conference.
“He is the hero of the game for me, he sacrificed for the team, he came on the pitch to help us. We need players like him.”
The victory bolstered Slavia Prague's chances of progressing into the knockout stage of the competition since they have joined Leverkusen and Hapoel Beer Sheva on three points, but remain behind on goal difference, while Nice are at the base of the group.
Olayinka has now featured eight times for the Sinobo Stadium outfit, scoring two goals across all competitions this season.
The forward will be expected to continue with his fine performances in front of goal when Slavia Prague take on Nice in their next outing in the European competition on November 5.
Olayinka has been with Slavia Prague since the summer of 2018 when he teamed up with the Czech Republic side from Gent.
