Victor Osimhen: Serie A and Napoli loss a Blessing for Super Lig and Galatasaray

Victor Osimhen has arrived in Turkiye and signed a season long loan contract with Galatasaray from Napoli.

The Nigerian sensation has had a long summer following a couple of failed moves, with both Chelsea and Al Ahli falling short in their attempts to sign him on loan or in permanent deals from the Serie A club.

Osimhen, whose relationship with Napoli broke down during the summer window was always keen on a move away from the club, a thought which prompted the hierarchy to inform new manager Antonio Conte that the Nigerian is no longer in their plans for the future.

However, albeit Victor Osimhen received a lot of criticism for his failed move to a more prominent club in Chelsea, it would appear that the current CAF Men’s Player of the Year was left with no choice than to decline a potential move to London during the summer window.

Moreso, Victor Osimhen was left with a difficult decision as per the alternative, which was to pursue the interest from Al Ahli of Saudi Arabia, who have offered a much better financial package. But at the age of 25, it is too early to depart for the Middle East.

Around this time a year ago, fresh from winning the Scuddetto with the club, Victor Osimhen was seen as a legend in Napoli. It is disheartening how things can change in the span of twelve months. It got so bad that Napoli had to lower their demands to less than half of the player’s release clause just to have him off the books.

Victor Osimhen and Napoli: The fun before the foul

Napoli signed Victor Osimhen from Lille in an ambitious move, a club-record fee of €70 million potentially rising to €80 million with add-ons, making the Nigerian the most expensive African player in the summer of 2020.

Osimhen, despite being 20 at the time, had already built a rich reputation for himself by winning the top scorer and second best player awards in the FIFA Under-17 World Cup five years earlier. He had also added a host of other individual accolades in other African youth tournaments.

In his final season Lille, before the move to Napoli, Osimhen won the Prix Marc-Vivien Foé, an award for the Best African Player in Ligue 1 in the 2019-20, while he was also named club’s Player of the season having scored 18 goals and five assists in 38 games across all club competitions.

His performance on loan at Sporting Charleroi the season before was also testament to his talent and consistency. Osimhen hit 20 goals and four assists in 36 games for the Belgian club, which also made him earn the chance to star for the French club.

Victor Osimhen did not particcularly hit the ground running at Napoli but always delivered when available. His early days in Italy was hampered by injuries. Osimhen suffered seven different injuries in his first two seasons in the Serie A, missing 41 games altogether.

However, his capability was always there to be seen when fit and available. Although he was played as a substitute on several occasions, he was able to register 28 goals and five assists to his name in that period. He claimed the Best Young Player of Serie A award at the end of the 2021-22.

It was in the 2022-23 campaign when he finally justified his price tag. Osimhen had a stunning season and helped Napoli to their first Serie A title in 33 years. The star striker won the Capocannoniere, the award for the Serie A top scorer, for his 26 league goals during the season.

In doing so, Osimhen became the first-ever African to win the award. The achievement, coupled with helping Napoli reach its first-ever UEFA Champions League quarter-final saw him won the CAF Best Player award, whilst he also become the first Nigerian to make the Ballon d’Or top 10, ranking eigth in 2023.

He became an inspiration in the streets of Naples, with both old and young portraying themselves in his image, and his protective mask became a famous costume. Unfortunately, that was as good as the relationship between Osimhen and Napoli get.

Where it went sour

Napoli struggled for consistency at the start of last season. After winning their first two league games, they went on a run of three without success, missing a penalty with the chance to win the third game in their trip to Bologna. The penalty miss birth a ugly incidence where the official TikTok page of Napoli posted a video to taunt the striker.

Having been afforded the pleasant taste of prosperity, Victor Osimhen would not stick around when the otherwise has become the hallmark at the club, while the club also embraced their new reality but for the recent appointment of a top class manager in Antonio Conte.

The loss of manager Luciano Spalletti in the wake of their successful campaign saw the beginning of their fall from grace. Napoli also lost important players like Kim Min-Jae, Eljif Elmas and Hirvin Lozano to Bayern Munich, RB Leipzig and PSV Eindhoven respectively in the same summer.

Signings such as Jesper Lindstrom, Cyril Ngonge, Jens Cajuste and the rest failed to make real impact in their debut season. To add to their misery, top players, most especially Victor Osimhen, battled with injuries, further upsetting the plans of new managers.

Napoli had three different managers during the 2023-24 season. It started with Rudi Garcia, who replaced Spalletti on the job. The Frenchman left before the turn of the year and was replaced by their former boss Walter Mazzarri. Mazzarri was replaced by Francesco Calzona in February and it was Calzona who saw out the rest of the season.

Napoli failed woefully in their bid for a title defence, finishing out of a place in Europe altogether. The inconsistent of managers that suceeded Spalletti did not help their cause. Gli Azzurri won just 13 out of 38 league games, and finished tenth. They also endured a forgettable run in other competitions, including a 4-0 home loss to Frosinone in their only match of the Coppa Italia.

Their inability to remain competitive would see many of their star players seek greener pastures. Piotr Zielinski had reached an agreement to move to Inter even before the end of the season while Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was very close to joining PSG Paris Saint-German before a final minute u-turn.

The reality of Napoli is that they are no longer a top club in Italy, and are now well behind Juventus, who recently return to prominent again, Inter, Milan, Atalanta, Roma and a few others. Even through they now have a top manager in Antonio Conte, their absence in Europe this season does not make them appear appealing enough.

Although Osimhen signed a contract extension during the same season, it was obvious the intention was not to keep him but to make the best of the situation financially, with club president Aurelio de Laurentiis stating earlier in the year that the former Wolfsburg goal getter has a huge release clause in their new agreement.

“Some players stay for many years, others are wanted by PSG, Arsenal, Man City, Chelsea. It’s difficult to keep players when they are wanted by rich clubs. I can confirm there’s a release clause, very high one”. De Laurentiis said in February.

Maybe there is where Osimhen got it wrong. Allowing the insertion of so much release clause, knowing the reputation of De Laurentiis as one of the most difficult to deal with, when it comes to the transfer of players.

Yet, he signed an agreement to a reported €130 million release clause, which put Napoli in control of his future. But given the wages offered to Osimhen at the time of signing the latest agreement in December, who would dare blame the striker for accepting such terms.

Earlier in the summer, Osimhen was linked with a move to PSG but his release clause put off the French giants. And later in the summer when the 25-year-old became available for much less, the club was no longer interested in rejuvenating their interest.

Eventually, Napoli did agree to his departure but with Al Ahli the only offer on the table at some point, it gives the striker a lot to think about, as moving to Saudi Arabia is not always a famous thing for player of his status, and at such age of their career.

Why not a move to Chelsea, Al Ahli ?

In the final hours of the summer window, the battle against time for the signature was on. Both Chelsea and Al Ahli were eager to land him and have reportedly concluded agreement with Napoli, only awaiting the green light from the player. Which unfortunately never came.

There was a series of reports that the fault lies with the player’s agent Roberto Calenda, who wanted to make the best of the situation. Al Ahli offered a lucrative contract, reportedly worth €1 million per week. The same they offered to Ivan Toney, who was eventually signed after Osimhen’s camp failed to agree to the move.

It remains unclear why the move was not successful. Could it be that Victor Osimhen did not want to move because of the money just yet, or that his agent was not satisfied with what he would get from the deal ? Maybe one of these days, the truth behind the matter will come to light.

There was also an offer from Chelsea to consider. However, it was reported that the London club’s offer was way too below the player’s valuation of himself. Chelsea offered an annual salary of €7 million to Osimhen, around 40 per cent which will go for taxes.

Osimhen was reluctant to accept the offer, which is lower to what he is currently entitled to at Napoli. Even when the club threatened to froze him out of the squad, he would not bend, but stood his ground maintained that the club would have to find another means to solve the situation.

After the transfer window shut in the major leagues in Europe, Napoli confirmed the exclusion of Victor Osimhen from the first team squad. The news was accompanied by the speculation that his No.9 shirt will be handed to Romelu Lukaku and threats to demote him to the reserves if he would not find a solution before all other alternatives is exhausted.

Serie A and Napoli loss a Blessing for Super Lig and Galatasaray

Victor Osimhen is now a player for Galatasaray in the Super Lig on a temporary spell, which at maximum will end next summer. It is a big win for the Turkiye top division to behold a player who ranks in the top ten in the most recent Ballon d’Or.

Despite his struggles last season, Osimhen was the most proficient put of the eleven players to have attempted 80 or more shots in the Serie A last season, with 46 per cent of his efforts hitting the target, a data which further solidifying the status of the Nigerian striker as still a very top player. World class.

Although the Super Lig has had its share of great players in the past, it was not until many of those have past their prime before opting to move there. Wesley Sneijder and Didier Drogba to mention but a few, at some point spent time in the league, the Galatasaray also serving as home to them.

The arrival of Osimhen in Turkiye had an instant impact on both the fortune of the club and the league, an improvement projected to blossom in the coming days, even before he would make his debut after the international break.

While some fans still question his decision of eventually accepting an offer of €10 million a year salary from Galatasaray and rejecting €3 million less from Chelsea, it is worth note that the taxes in Turkiye is much less compared to in England, and to add, Galatasaray will play in the Europa League, while Chelsea plays in Europe’s third-tier league.

For the Serie A, losing their league’s highest-rated player, as well as the current best player on the continent of Africa does no good to their visibility, but their loss is a blessing of both Galatasaray and the Super Lig, who are both bound to gain more fans, particularly in Africa in the months to come.

Whether or not Victor Osimhen spends the whole season in Turkiye is still to be seen. The certainty is that the striker stands a better chance of winning silverwares with his new employer than with any of the clubs he could have been, had things gone as planned in the summer, except of course, maybe, at PSG Paris Saint-German.

At 25, Victor Osimhen will surely have his eyes in more prominent move in the near future and spending time with Napoli reserves is no longer the case. At the expense of playing at a club which no longer hold love for him, he can now focus on the goals of a new season, which is doing what he loves best in an environment that appreciate his presence.

Hassan Afolabi