It wasn’t long ago that Victor Osimhen was one of the most coveted forwards in the world, perhaps only behind Kylian Mbappé and his expiring contract at one point. Yet, on paper, his career has taken a turn for the worse, seeing the world-class Nigerian striker move from SSC Napoli, who he won Serie A with, to the Turkish Süper Lig.
This isn’t to say anything against the Süper Lig or Galatasaray, of course, but Serie A ranks as one of the elite clubs in Europe, and he was on the team that somehow blitzed past the domineering Juventus in 2022/23. Still, looking at his parent club and the striker in focus, let’s see if the loan was the right move.
Best Player in the Süper Lig
It would have been easy and understandable for Victor Osimhen to turn up in Turkey on loan to just see out another year on his big-money deal, eyeing up a return to Italy in the summer and a permanent move elsewhere. Instead, the Lagos-born sharpshooter put up 19 goals and five assists in his first 24 games.
These stats have come amidst a few little injuries, like a muscle strain that kept him out of a few games, as well as a fever. Those 24 games also didn’t include any cup or international matches, just being drawn from the Europa League and Süper Lig.
Alongside the incredibly versatile Barış Alper Yılmaz, commanding centre-back Abdülkerim Bardakci, and Belgium international Dries Mertens, Osimhen has reinstated Galatasaray as Süper Lig favourites. In fact, betting sites in Nigeria favor his team above all others at -500 to win the Turkish league.
This is despite the resurgence of Fenerbahçe. Out at +350, José Mourinho’s team has arguably been better than Galatasaray. They’ve scored more goals – especially from open play at 37-28 – haven’t had anyone sent off, and tie Osimhen’s club on goals against. Yet, Galatasaray were six points ahead at the 23-game mark and primed for the title.
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Winning Without Osimhen
Whenever Antonio Conte goes, someone’s feathers get ruffled. Despite having one of the most desirable strikers in world football, Osimhen was surplus to requirements. Even with this surprising change, Conte’s style, which the Italian has had to tweak along the way, is on the path to winning the title.
At 25 games in, SSC Napoli led Serie A by two points, leading a close pack of Inter Milan, Atalanta, and, more distantly, Juventus and Lazio. Interestingly, while they are different levels of football with different tiers of teammates, Osimhen’s replacement has played one more game to this point (25) with seven fewer goal involvements.
Romelu Lukaku was brought in to appease Conte. He needed his hefty striker up top, ready to bring the ball down, play the centre-forward role, and bang in his fair share of goals. In 25 games, Lukaku led Napoli with nine goals and eight assists. So, with Napoli just ahead at -110 to win Serie A, to this point, the switch was a smart move.
So, Osimhen has been able to remain on the field, scoring plenty of goals, competing in Europe, and looks set to add another trophy to his cabinet, while Napoli are also currently on the right path to a league title. However, it’s this summer that Osimhen’s release clause of €80 million can be activated.
Even if both parties win their respective league titles, with Osimhen still firing on all cylinders, it’d be tough to say that Napoli was right to loan him out when doing so means they could lose him for what would be a discount price.
