Canadian-Nigerian striker Promise 'Tobi' David made Belgian football history this weekend, as his double inspired Union Saint-Gilloise to their first top flight title since 1935, proving why he's being nicknamed 'baby Lukaku' at his club in the process.
However, Super Eagles fans getting excited about the prospect of another hotshot further bolstering the national team's ranks of elite attacking options ought not get too carried away, with the 23-year-old's international future destined to be elsewhere.
When the forward, who committed to Canada in February, signed for Union St Gilloise last July, he surely wasn't expecting to emerge as the chief protagonist in a historic title-winning season within a year.
Once rejected by Toronto FC's academy, David had enjoyed a fine goalscoring spell with Estonian side Nomme Kalju after progressing from their U-21 team, where he had scored an eye-watering 22 goals in 19 third-tier outings during 2023.
With 21 league goals in 39 outings in the top flight across '23 and '24, there's evidence of a forward whose sheer physical presence, coupled with underrated goalscoring instincts, make him a fearsome prospect.
A three-year deal with Union SG was a sensible if steady career step for the striker as he looked to test himself in a tougher league, although he did find himself charged with replacing the club's leading frontman Gustaf Nilsson following his €6.4m exit to Club Brugge.
David wasn't an immediate hit during the early months; he scored just once in his first seven league games, and had struck only four by Christmas, representing one goal every 3.5 matches.
There were even murmurs that, at 400,000 Euros, Union might have overspent for a striker who appeared miles away from the levels expected in Belgium.
Turnaround in form
Since a Boxing Day strike in the 3-1 victory at heavyweights Gent, however, he hit a rich vein of form, with his consistency in the final third underpinning Union's title tilt.
Following the appointment of attacking coach Kevin Mirallas, 'Tobi' has had a hand in 18 goals across 20 league matches, scoring 15 himself and laying on a further three assists.
A further goal against Dutch giants Ajax, then imperious domestically, in the Europa League knockouts in late February brought his talents to a wider attention, but he's been giving Belgian defences sleepless nights since the end of last year, with teams - time and time again - struggling to contain the imposing targetman.
David's size immediately stands out - he's 6'4 - but he also marries this clear aerial threat with impressive power, and, unlike a more traditional targetman, an ability to attack defenders with the ball at his feet before going for goal himself.
"[Tobi] worked a lot," teammate Noah Sadiki revealed on the Extra Time show. "We supported him a lot too, because it was difficult, but he's become a machine.
"He can have a moment in the match where he is a bit off and loses the ball easily, but when he is 100 percent in the match, you don't take a single ball away [from him]," he added. "[Mirallas] calls him 'baby Lukaku'
"He also told me that 'David Lukaku' can maybe even become a little bit better."
New head coach Sebastien Pocognoli's side won all but one of the nine matches after the Ajax elimination, including the first five matches of the end-of-season championship playoffs.
David scored five in their first five playoff matches as Union reaffirmed their title credentials, despite finishing the regular league season in third - 13 points behind table-topping Genk.
This run included a rampant 5-1 thumping of poor Royal Antwerp as David created one of the iconic images in recent Union memory as he drove relentlessly forward towards goal, despite centreback Rosen Bozhinov's futile attempts to halt the striker's advance by tearing at his shirt, ultimately ripping the garment partly from the Nigerian's frame.
David, too strong, too determined, was unbowed, and refusing to go down or halt his run, he escaped Bozhinov, cut past Jairo Riedewald and fired emphatically beyond Senne Lammens.
A new kit was required for Tobi, but it hardly mattered, as Union romped to a victory that served as a clear statement of their title intent.
It was against Genk on April 20, that David delivered arguably his finest performance of the campaign, opening the scoring from the penalty spot late in the first half, before adding a second for the visitors early in the second after fine work from Senegalese midfielder Ousseynou Niang.
Belgian Pro League title secured
Nonetheless, nothing was assured heading into the final day, where Union enjoyed a fine one-point lead and still needed victory to guarantee the title.
Last year's success in the Belgian Cup - a first triumph in this competition since 1914 - ultimately proved to be a sign of things to come.
Introduced just before the hour mark, Tobi required just 11 minutes to give Union the lead, rifling home from close range with his right foot after being played in by Anouar Air El Hadj, who had capitalised on a lapse by the defence.
The striker ripped off his shirt in celebration - a throwback to the Royal Antwerp incident perhaps? - but gleefully accepted his yellow card as he eyed a spot in Union hearts for eternity.
Six minutes later, he had a second, meeting a delicious cross from the excellent Charles Vanhoutte to head beyond Tom Vandenberghe and prompt scenes of ecstatic jubilation in the hosts' tiny 9,4k-capacity ground.
"Today I was the cherry on top, but everyone was ice cream," David told DAZN after the match, before signing the UEFA Champions League anthem during an exuberant touchline interview.
"I didn't really think about [the critics earlier in the season], I just score goals wherever I go, so it's not a big deal. I bag usually, wherever I go."
On choosing Canada over Nigeria
By now, the modest €400k outlay on David is looking like money well spent, with the likes of Leeds United - now Premier League-bound - Rennes, Strasbourg, Paris FC and Lille already being named as potential suitors for the frontman.
Lille have already enjoyed success in recruiting from the Belgian top tier; Jonathan David was €30 million signing from Gent back in 2020, even though he didn't quite match Tobi's goalscoring numbers during his final Belgian season.
With Lille's David set for the exit door as his contract reaches a conclusion, could Union's David be the man to replace him at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy?
The pair could also be set to link up for the Canadian national team in the not-too-distant future, with Canada appearing primed to beat Nigeria to secure the striker's international commitment.
While David was born and raised in Canada, only moving to Europe with FK Trnje of Croatia in his late teens, he had already represented Nigeria, the land of his parents, at youth level, playing for the U-23s during the qualifiers for the U-23 Africa Cup of Nations in 2022.
His Nigerian heritage remains close to his heart; David lived in the country for several years as a child, and his chosen name - Tobi - comes from his Yoruba middle name, Oluwatobi.
Earlier this year, however, he indicated that he wouldn't be pursuing an international career with the Super Eagles as, despite expressions of interest from the NFF, he preferred to throw his hat into the ring for Jesse Marsch's Canada.
"Canadian football raised me," he told The Athletic, "so I feel like I owe it back to Canada to perform for them.
"Playing for Nigeria was great, but it was just an opportunity. I like what [Marsch] has done with the team. You see the rapid increase.
"I think being a part of that history is an opportunity I should not pass up."
With the switch subsequently ratified by FIFA, this striking powerhouse's international future looks to be sealed, although don't be surprised if his next club side becomes a hot talking point during the offseason transfer window.