Babatunde first foreigner to win league Golden Boot
History has been rewritten in Malawi football after Nigerian striker Babatunde Adepoju was declared the 2022 TNM Super League season top goa-scorer to become the first foreigner to do so.
The Nyasa Big Bullets marksman has won the Golden Boot with 18 goals, beating second-placed Mighty Mukuru Wanderers striker Muhammad Sulumba who has 15 goals.
Babatunde scored his 18th goal on Saturday when Bullets defeated Dedza Dynmos 2-1 at Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre.
The imposing striker said he was glad to win the award and contributed to Bullets’ winning the 2022 championship.
He said: “I thank God and my teammates for this achievement.”
Babatunde came close to winning the Golden Boot with Mighty Wanderers in 2019, when he led the scorers chat for months to end.
But then Silver Strikers marksman Khuda Myaba, who is now with Polokwane City, vowed to dislodge the Nigerian.
He succeeded to overtake the Nigerian and won the gong with 21 goals to become the first striker to score over 20 goals in 10 years.
In that campaign, Babatunde finished third with 14 goals after he was also overtaken by Bullets’ Hassan Kajoke who netted 17.
There was no football in 2020 due to Covid-19.
But in 2021 Babatunde was nowhere near the Golden Boot, finishing the season with six goals.
Kajoke succeeded Myaba and won it on the last day with 15 goals, beating second placed Silver’s Maxwell Gastin Phodo who netted 13.
This season, Phodo was also nowhere near, after scoring just one goal while Kajoke has nine.
Instead, it was Babatunde who immediately made an impact after joining Bullets from Wanderers.
The Golden Boot was the third accolade for Babatunde who also won the 2022 FDH Bank Cup top scorer award and as the 2021 Airtel Top 8 Golden Boot.
Despite beating last season winner Kajoke’s 15 goals, Babatunde has failed to beat Myaba’s 21 goals as well as Aggrey Kanyenda’s record 26 goals set 12 years ago.
