All eyes are on the Napoli striker Victor Osimhen as the potential top scorer of this year’s Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON 2023) after many of the league’s stars have failed to advance past the quarter-finals. Even further, Osimhen is now dead set on winning the league as he aims to bring Nigeria to win the title.
Although Osimhen only scored once in Nigeria’s previous 1-1 draw in Ivory Coast against Equatorial Guinea, he managed to put so much pressure on his opponents despite not making scores regularly.
“He didn’t score but he had a fantastic game. It is not easy to stop that guy! Ask the defenders of the opposition how they suffer,” said Nigeria’s coach Jose Peseiro.
Ahead of the title’s finals, Osimhein said he is more of a team player despite people’s captivation for his incredible on-the-field performance.
“I really don’t care even whether I start or not. For me to be there playing with them is a big one for me. I just want to keep on helping the team,” said Osimhen.
Random test result
Before Osimhen progressed further in the league, he and two other Super Eagles players, forward Ademola Lookman and captain William Troost-Ekong, had drug tests that resulted negative after Nigeria’s 2-0 victory against Cameroon.
News about random drug tests for football players emerged after the victory. Osimhen was picked for the drug test because of his tireless performance during the match against Cameroon, which caught the attention of the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
Osimhen was particularly dead set on winning the match against Cameroon, where at one point, he secured a ball from a Cameroonian defender and passed it to Lookman as Nigeria’s first goal.
Until Osimhen exhausted his time on the pitch, Osimhen tirelessly chased every ball. This put stress and pressure on Cameroon’s defence until Nigeria seized the day.
After medical teams performed the drug test on Osimhen, one anonymous physician said Osimhen’s condition was not out of the ordinary. Furthermore, Osimhen’s top performance during the match is more likely the result of his consistent training to keep his condition fit.
Nigerian fans immediately took to social media to express their fascination with Osimhen for successfully clearing the drug test. A commenter on X (formerly Twitter) said Osimhen is a beast who can probably showcase more impressive performance in world-class clubs like Bayern, City, and Madrid.
Peseiro’s contribution to Nigeria
Despite Osimhen’s stellar performance, Peseiro also deserved credit for making himself one of the most successful coaches in the AFCON 2023 alongside Hugo Bross and several other coaches.
Before the tournament started, Nigeria was not anyone’s pick in their minds when it came to potentially consistent and high-achieving performers in AFCON 2023. Nigeria’s draw against Lesotho and Zimbabwe in November and its loss against Guinea days before the tournament certainly did not push people into thinking that Nigeria would somehow come out on top in AFCON 2023.
Several weeks later, Nigeria became one of Africa’s top four countries in FIFA’s rankings in the 42nd place after Morocco, Senegal, and Tunisia. Nigeria successfully secured that rank thanks to the robust team management by Peseiro in recent matches.
Despite recent successes, Peseiro warned his players not to get too caught up in euphoria from their successes due to the potentially difficult upcoming last-eight match against Angola. In this regard, Peseiro said the team still has some way to go, and Nigeria’s opponents will only become more difficult to fight.
While nothing is certain for the remainder of AFCON 2023, Nigerian fans can maintain their support for the Super Eagles by betting on their favourite players. Furthermore, playing certain games like the Big Dawgs may become a pastime for passionate sports bettors who are waiting for the next matches in AFCON 2023.
