Victor Osimhen offered Nigeria’s Africa Cup of Nations rivals a timely reminder of his threat after getting on the scoresheet in Galatasaray’s emphatic 4-1 win over Antalyaspor on Saturday.
The Super Eagles striker was making his final club appearance before linking up with Nigeria’s squad for AFCON 2025 and responded with a composed second-half finish as the Turkish champions cruised to victory.
Osimhen had drawn a blank in Galatasaray’s 1-0 defeat to Monaco in the UEFA Champions League in midweek, but he looked sharper from the outset as Okan Buruk’s side overwhelmed their visitors.
Photo Credit: Imago
Galatasaray raced into an early lead when Leroy Sané struck inside seven minutes, before Roland Sallai doubled the advantage just four minutes later to give the hosts a comfortable cushion at the break.
The dominance continued after the restart and Osimhen got his reward midway through the second half. The Nigeria international latched onto a precise through ball from Yunus Akgün, burst into the penalty area and calmly guided his effort into the bottom-left corner to make it 3-0.
Photo Credit: Imago
Antalyaspor briefly threatened a response when Sander van der Streek pulled one back in the 69th minute, but Mauro Icardi restored Galatasaray’s three-goal advantage in stoppage time to cap a commanding display.
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Osimhen’s goal comes at an ideal moment as Nigeria prepare for AFCON 2025 in Morocco, where the Super Eagles have been drawn alongside Tanzania, Tunisia and Uganda.
Photo Credit: Imago
The Galatasaray lynchpin who last week won the GQ Turkish Sportsman of the year has now scored 12 goals in 16 games across all competitions ( 6 in the League & 6 in the UCL).
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Yet to win a major international trophy with Nigeria, the 26-year-old heads into the tournament with momentum and confidence, qualities that will not go unnoticed by the teams tasked with trying to contain him.
