Football World Celebrates Victor Osimhen As He Clocks 22
Serie A side Napoli, French outfit Lille and the Nigeria Football Federation were amongst those who recognised striker Victor Osimhen’s 22nd birthday on Tuesday.
The fleet-footed goal machine rose to prominence while featuring for Nigeria U17 at the 2015 Fifa U17 World Cup staged in Chile.
There, he propelled Emmanuel Amuneke’s team to a record fifth world title, while his scintillating performances earned him the Silver Ball award behind compatriot Kelechi Nwakali. He also walked home with the Golden Boot prize after finding the net on ten occasions.
The same year, he was named as Africa’s Youth Player of the Year by the Confederation of African Football.
Osimhen made his senior debut for Nigeria on June 1, 2017 as Gernot Rohr’s men silenced Togo 3-0 in a friendly encounter. Nevertheless, his erratic showing with his then club, Wolfsburg, cost him a place in the Super Eagles’ squad to the 2018 Fifa World Cup Russia.
However, he was recalled to the team’s 2019 Africa Cup of Nations campaign in Egypt – featuring in his only game against Tunisia as the three-time African kings settled for bronze.
Before then, he was drafted to the Nigeria U23 team who failed in their quest to pick a ticket to the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
After a loan spell at Belgium’s Charleroi, Osimhen joined the Mastiffs from Belgian First Division A club Sporting Charleroi as a direct replacement for Cote d’Ivoire star Nicolas Pepe who joined Premier League outfit Arsenal.
At Lille’s Stade Pierre-Mauroy, he became an instant hit delivering admirable performances that endeared him to the club’s fans.
With French football cancelled in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the Super Eagles star ended up with 18 goals and six assists in 38 appearances across all competitions – a feat that earned him Lille’s player of the season accolade and the 2020 Marc-Vivien Foe prize.
Despite been linked with several top European clubs following his impressive goal scoring season, including Arsenal and Liverpool, he joined the Gennaro Gattuso’s team before the start of the 2020-21 campaign in a deal reported to be worth €50 million (£45m/$59m) to become Africa’s most expensive player of all time.
