Related Post
Victor Osimhen could imprint his name into Nigerian football history when Galatasaray face Liverpool in Tuesday night’s Champions League clash in Istanbul, Footynaija.com reports.
The 26-year-old striker has nine goals in the competition, level with Obafemi Martins, and is now just one strike away from becoming Nigeria’s outright all-time leading scorer in Europe’s premier club tournament. Reaching double figures would make him the first Nigerian to hit that milestone.
What makes the feat more remarkable is the speed at which Osimhen has done it. Martins needed 34 games to reach nine goals for Inter Milan, while Osimhen has taken only 17 appearances across spells with Lille and Napoli. He found the net twice in France before adding seven more in Italy, scoring against the likes of Chelsea, Barcelona and AC Milan.
Osimhen has also spread his goals across seven different opponents. But the Galatasaray striker heads into the Liverpool tie short of rhythm, having managed just five minutes of football since picking up an ankle injury during Nigeria’s World Cup qualifier against Rwanda earlier this month.
Only seven Nigerians have ever scored more than three Champions League goals, with Victor Ikpeba (7), Nwankwo Kanu (5), Yakubu Aiyegbeni (5), Ademola Lookman (5) and Samuel Chukwueze (4) completing the list behind Osimhen and Martins.
Now, all eyes turn to Istanbul to see if Osimhen can return from injury with a record-breaking strike.
