Izuchukwu Okosi
Former Super Eagles striker Obafemi Martins believes it will be in the best interest of inform Napoli hitman Victor Osimhen to remain put at his Serie A club, SS Napoli for one more season rather than venturing into the uncertainty of a new club.
Osimhen has been valued at over €100m by his club Napoli whose President Aurelio de Lorentis insisting that there is an agreement in principle for the Nigerian to extend his contract by two more seasons unless an outrageous offer is received.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelOsimhen has attracted interests from a number of leading clubs across Europe including Manchester United, Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich albeit he still has two years on his contract with the Serie A champions.
Martins who won the Scudetto at Inter Milan during his playing days and also enjoyed relative successes at other European clubs was guest of Brila FM, Lagos and was interviewed by his former international teammate and now radio pundit, Ifeanyi Udeze.
“Osimhen has really done do well in Italy and for you to play in the Serie A and score a lot of goals, you must be special,” Martins told Udeze on the Brila FM programme, ‘No Holds Barred’ on Tuesday.
On the subject of the club that best suits Osimhen’s style of play and where he is guaranteed to continue in the rich vein of form that saw him break a number of goal scoring records in the Italian topflight.
“All the major leagues in Europe are looking to sign him and he has shown everyone his qualities as a striker. He has broken Weah’s record and also my own record in the Champions League.
Osimhen matched Obafemi Martins’ record for the most goals scored by a Nigerian in a UEFA Champions League campaign.
The FIFA U-17 World Cup winner in 2015 reached the feat after his dying minute’s equaliser in Napoli’s 1-1 draw against AC Milan in the second leg of their UCL quarter-final clash in April 2023.
“We don’t even know the number of goals that he will score next season, and he can do it. And you know it’s very difficult to play in Italy as a blackman. It’s a huge respect to break those records.
Udeze insisted on hearing Martins’ opinion on the club Osimhen should sign for and ‘Obagoal’ as he was affectionately called said:
“It depends on the club he’s going to. But I don’t want him to go to a club where he will struggle. He needs to keep the momentum going.
“To err on the side of caution, I would suggest that he stays back in Napoli at least for one more season,” Martins stated.
Osimhen is currently holidaying in Nigeria ahead of his club’s pre season commitments in July.
The 2023/2024 Italian Serie A season will start on Sunday, 20 August 2023.
Izuchukwu Okosi is a Nigerian sports and entertainment journalist with two decades of experience in the media industry having begun his media journey in 2002 as an intern at Mundial Sports International (MSI) and Africa Independent Television (AIT), owners of Daar Communications Plc.
