IKENWA NNABUOGOR hands full license to SSC Napoli striker Victor Osimhen to go full blast for The New Italian Job in his second season in Serie A…
The expectations and the fanfare that greeted Victor Osimhen’s record transfer to Italian top side Napoli were seriously half-hearted owing to the initial problems the former Lille striker encountered following his switch from French side Lille.
The price tag was enormous and fitting for a 30-goal-a-season striker, but Osimhen was hard-done by a combination of injuries and positive Covid-19 result to struggle to get among the goals.
Ten straight games were missed as Osimhen battled injuries as the Neapolitans were growing impatient that their most prized acquisition was not putting smiles on their faces.
Pressures soon became calls for his sale as the fans wanted instant pay back, but Osimhen was growing from strength to strength as former coach Gennaro Gattuso and the Napoli egg heads were sure of their record buy and decorated patience on his table.
Late blooming Osimhen was glad to repay the confidence as his efforts before the goal brought back happiness and joy on the fans’ faces.
Osimhen was back in the groove after his initial troubles, looking turbo-charged, rejuvenated and pushing to prove a point – and 10 goals he managed proved not bad enough for a striker whose plate was full to explode.
Last season gone, enter new season – Osimhen is looking good and appears he is now fully ready for The Italian Job for which a staggering transfer fee of €71 million was paid to Lille, including add-ons that could up it to €83 million.
Just like his debut season, during the pre-season games, Osimhen’s house is still on fire, punishing defenders and goalkeepers as the pre-season games continued to gradually give way for the season proper in next two weekends.
New coach Luciano Spalletti arrived from a two-year Sabbatical after leaving Inter Milan and quickly loved what he saw of Osimhen and has been smiling with his performance and equally working hard to turn him into a deadlier marksman.
With Inter Milan, fresh from a rare Scuddeto triumph – their first in 10 years – Spalletti is expected to do same at Napoli, whose last hurrah was the late Diego Maradona-inspired league win in the 1989/1990 season.
With Maradona in the famous tripatite partnership codenamed “Ma-Gi-Ca” involving veteran Italian striker Bruno Giordano and Brazilian striker Careca, Napoli broke the dreadful Italian north and south dichotomy that also found it’s ugly way into football by winning the league title from the vice grip-hold of AC Milan and Juventus in the 1986/87 season.
Napoli belonging to southern Italy did the unthinkable again three years later and have not won the title again since then.
Spalletti is synonymous to title wins as demonstrated by winning the league title twice at Zenit Petersburg in the Russian Premier League, as well as winning the Coppa Italia twice at AS Roma.
With Osimhen firing well, and captain Lorenzo Insignee and Belgian marksman, Dries Martens returning all the favours, Spalletti is rest assured Napoli will be frontlining a dogfight for the Scuddeto.
Osimhen’s double strike against Bayern Munich in Napoli impressive 3-0 win before their disappointed fans at Allianz Arena could be seen as the height of his battle readiness for the Italian Job which begins on August 22, when newly promoted Venezia come visiting.
What about the tools for The New Italian Job?
Osimhen didn’t leave them in Lagos, rather he appears to be battle ready for the job so much that Spalletti warned him to take it easy.
Power, pace and grit appear to be over supplied in his store tank forcing Spalletti to advise him to rely more on his brains.
Effective use of the brain by this proven marksman is work in progress as Spalletti will have a task to make him to be scoring for fun.
Age is also his big asset and his usual full of running self will also continue to worry the Serie A defenders.
His experience with the Serie A hatchet men is on the fast rise and even left him a bloodied head here and there last season, he will expect a tougher experience in the new season.
One more successful season packed with goals and one or two laurels, Osimhen could again be breaking more transfer records.
Real Madrid, Manchester United and City as well as PSG and Bayern Munich are watching with keen interest and could be putting him in the transfer news headlines again, but he must work hard to earn such recognition.
But before then, good luck to the Super Eagle set for The New Italian Job with Napoli!
