‘Cheetah within’ inspires West Brom striker Peter Odemwingie to refind scoring touch

Peter Odemwingie (Getty Images)

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West Bromwich Albion striker Peter Odemwingie has revealed focusing on the “cheetah” within him has helped him top the club’s goal scoring tables.

The former Lille man scored his 14th goal of the season against Aston Villa and admitted that help from a sports psychologist had kept him focused on hitting the back of the net when he was going through a barren spell.

“He the sports psychologist tried to make me forget about the missed chances and bring out the instinct,” he told the club’s official website.

“I am a player who does better using his instincts than thinking.

“He showed me an image of a running cheetah. He said when I run that he sees that in me, that I change direction and am quick.

“The thing about it is cheetahs have the belief in their speed and quality to catch something. That means when they lose one they are not scared because they are going to get the next one.

“He said put that in your mind and don’t be too worried about a lost chance, so I started doing that. It made sense to me.”

Odemwingie had gone five games without scoring and felt the need to speak to a professional to help him get back to scoring ways, and it worked as he found the back of the net in the 2-2 draw with Arsenal.

And the Nigerian continued his rich scoring vein with his strike against Villa, his fourth goal in as many games, which saw him reach his personal target for the season.

“I have got to my personal record now and hopefully I will beat it by scoring at least one more,” he said.

“Hopefully in the next game – as long as we are sure about everything – if we get a penalty then I hope they will let me shoot.”

The victory over Villa moved the Baggies into 11th position in the Premier League and all but secured their safety with three games to play, and the striker admitted he was hoping to finish the season strongly and push themselves further up the table.

“Most importantly we got the three points which made the situation more clear to us that the future is bright and we are staying in the Premier League for next year.

“Now the target is bigger than just staying up, we are looking to get into the top ten.”