After all his early troubles trailing his record transfer to Napoli, Victor Osimhen has now got down to business of scoring goals, IKENWA NNABUOGOR assures…
From transfer speculations, lengthy Napoli transfer talks, Covid19 issues, to Napoli hitting their record acquisition with sanctions due to disciplinary violations, Super Eagles marksman Victor Osimhen is finally getting down to the brass tacks.
The 22-year-old leggy striker didn’t just start hitting the bull’s eye soon after Napoli paid Lille €83 million, including add-ons, but he endured a very tough start to get his employers smiling with confidence that they had done a good piece of business.
Pre-season flashes of brilliance were sadly consigned to the archives when the real Italian business started in September 2020 as the former Wolfsburg striker struggled to get among goals.
Critics were getting impatient as his expected torrents of goals were not near media headlines, but coach Gennaro Gatuso continued to keep faith with his proven front man whom he had frantically pursued from Lille.
Serie A experts were getting skeptical, writing him off, comparing him with legendary Napoli and Serie A strikers and ultimately dismissing him as bad business.
Some others queried the huge cash Napoli paid and dismissed him as striker who would soon be loaned or sold, but Gatuso was patient and worked hard to get his Nigerian ace firing again, just as he had done in Belgium and France.
The agonizing shoulder injury he suffered on duty for country in a disappointing 4-4 home draw with Sierra Leone in an AFCON qualifier in Benin City and the Covid-19 troubles combined to compound his no-scoring woes.
After netting just twice in Week 4 and in the eighth week in the 4-1 home win against Atalanta and 1-0 away victory at Bologna, respectively, he had to agonizingly watch from the sidelines in the subsequent 10 games due to his shoulder injury.
He would then return to fire blanks in at 3-1 away loss at Hellas Verona in the New Year.
Critics went to town again questioning the huge cash Napoli splashed on him, but Osimhen was saving his best for last to shame his critics and silence them with his goals.
Though some others hailed his high work rate and commitment and believed those attributes would soon translate into goals.
Serie A hatchet men will only help him by waking him up to reality he was in for some tough ride and he seems to have perfectly read their scripts, matching them strength for strength and grit for grit and even got his head bloodied in the line of duty.
His high work rate would eventually pay off after enduring a further tough eight games without a goal, amidst substitute roles, with a confidence-boosting goal in a 3-1 home win against Bologna in Week 26.
That Bologna effort was his third in 11 games and the criticisms that trialed his frantic efforts at goals continued to spur him to better his efforts at goal.
A goal-scoring return to Super Eagles in the final African Cup of Nations qualifier against visiting Lesotho appeared to have reopened his Napoli goals’ account, beginning with his lone goal in Napoli’s 4-3 win over Crotone four days after his return from Lagos.
Osimhen had finally got his groove back netting a further four goals in quick succession including three straight games leading up to his eighth goal of the season in Napoli’s 1-1 home draw with Cagliari on May 2.
With just four games left, Osimhen’s goals could still fire Napoli back in Europe either in the UEFA Europa Cup or the UEFA Champions League with their fifth placing and breathing down AC Milan’s necks for the last of Italy’s four Champions League’s ticket.
Osimhen may have retrieved his scoring boots from where he dumped them and his power, resilience, skill, high work rate and impressive eye for goal could still get him more goals and finish in double figures.
He has proved he can hold his own in the star-studded Serie A and next season will definitely see this exciting youngster stamp his feet to leave a footprint before he moves on.
Perhaps, he could still break his own African transfer record – he’s young, daring and most importantly knows his way to goal.
Who knows Juventus, Real Madrid, Manchester City or Manchester United could be knocking on Napoli’s doors soon?
