Over the years probably one of the most underrated players in the Premier League has been New Zealand centre-forward Chris Wood. The 33-year-old striker was at the hearts of things last weekend scoring a hat-trick for Nottingham Forest in the 7-0 thrashing of Brighton.
It was the first time a Forest player had scored a hat-trick at the City Ground since Nigel Clough (son of Brian) back in 1987. It was just what the club needed after their shock 5-0 defeat to Bournemouth the previous week.
Wood is not a flamboyant player and most of his strikes would not be candidates for "goal of the month." But he certainly knows how to score, particularly from close range. Since joining Forest in 2023 he has scored 32 goals in 62 appearances.
Wood commented recently: "I am not a man who is going to beat two or three players and stick it in the top corner. I'm a man who relies on service." And that's what he's been getting from this fine Forest team.
An important ingredient for Wood is his experience because he has "been around a bit". Since joining West Bromwich Albion in 2009, Wood has played for 12 different English clubs. During his four seasons at West Brom he was loaned out to six clubs -- Barnsley, Brighton, Birmingham, Bristol City, Millwall and Leicester -- which must have been very unsettling.
In 2013 he signed for Leicester and enjoyed a great start with the Foxes, scoring twice in the first 24 minutes of his first game against Huddersfield and following up with a hat-trick away to Bristol City. Two years later he helped Leicester win promotion to the Premier League. He moved to Leeds in 2015 where he enjoyed success with 41 goals in 83 appearances including an impressive 27 in 2016-17 when he was named Leeds player of the season.
In 2017, Wood moved to Burnley and the 2019-20 season saw him score 14 goals, his highest tally in the Premier League. In April 2021 he scored a hat-trick in a 4-0 away win at Wolves.
After a brief spell at Newcastle, he was signed by Forest in June 2023. In December, Wood showed the Magpies what they were missing when he scored a hat-trick against them at St James' Park. Last season he finished with 15 goals. This campaign he is spearheading Forest's terrific effort in the league, contributing 17 goals and surely there will be more to come.
The Kiwi has great respect for the supporters: "I can't thank the fans enough. They're always behind the team and myself. It's a pleasure playing in front of them."
He is also loved back home having scored 41 goals in 80 appearances for New Zealand.
Five other New Zealanders have played in the Premier League. The most well-known was Winston Reid, a defender who made 194 appearances for West Ham between 2010-21. Then there was Ryan Nelsen who played 172 times for Blackburn from 2005-12 and also had short spells will Spurs and QPR. Paving the way in 1995 was Lee Norfolk who ironically joined the Suffolk club Ipswich Town. However, he only played three times for them.
A final word from Wood: "I'm excited for the future. Forest have a lot of potential to grow and build, and that is what I want to be part of."