Victor Osimhen: Napoli striker faces spells on sideline with muscle injury

By Wale Mustapha

Nigeria striker, Victor Osimhen is likely to be unavailable for Napoli due to an injury suffered while on national duty.

The 24-year-old forward could be sidelined for up to eight weeks due muscle injury he reportedly suffered while on international assignment with the Super Eagles against Guinea Bissau in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.

Osimhen, who is the current top scorer in the Serie A featured in both legs against the Guineans and was reportedly playing with same injury in a bid to help Napoli win their first Scudetto in over 30 years.

However, reports in Italy claimed the injury happened while in national assignment as the Partenopei announced Friday that the Nigerian star had returned from international duty complaining of discomfort in the muscle, with subsequent tests affirming that had suffered a distractive lesion and will likely miss Sunday’s clash with AC Milan.

“Osimhen has been ruled out of Napoli’s upcoming Serie A clash with Milan, scheduled for April 2, and there are concerns that he could miss more important matches in April,” football Italia quoted the club source.

Osimhen’s latest injury could take him out of actions for up 12 weeks but could be less due to his recovery rate.

Osimhen’s absence will be a major blow for Partonopei in their run in for Serie A title and the UEFA Champions League quarter final clash with AC Milan.