LOSC Lille marksman Victor Osimhen has surprised more than a few with his stunning start to the 2019/20 season.
The Nigerian was brought in to bolster Lille's attacking ranks after the loss of Nicolas Pépé and Rafael Leão.
One of Europe's highly-rated youngsters is proving his 2015 FIFA Under-17 World Cup Golden boot and Silver ball achievement is no fluke. Having registered 13 goals in 22 games for club and country.
The gangly forward Combines flair, deadly finishing and tireless running which is a goldmine in modern-day football.
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| Victor Osimhen is turning heads in the French Ligue 1. (Sylvain Lefevre/Getty Images) |
It wasn't in any way smooth sailing for Osimhen, however, who did well to recover from a tough spell with injuries at Wolfsburg, by impressing at Charleroi in the Belgian Pro League last season.
The 20-year-old shoulders the goalscoring responsibilities for fifth-placed Lille, with seven league goals and two assists; amounting to 50% of his team's goals.
His energy and thirst for goals sees him averaging 3.1 Shots and 4.1 aerial duels won per game in Ligue 1.
Equally impressing in Europe, he has netted twice, the first of which saw a passionate goal celebration (that would put a smile on many faces across Nigeria) on his home Champions League debut against Chelsea.
His blistering form follows a summer on the Nigeria bench at AFCON 2019, where he played understudy to now-retired golden boot winner, Odion Ighalo.
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| The Lagos-born forward with his AFCON 2019 Bronze medal. (Modzero) |
He netted his first competitive goal in the AFCON 2021 qualifier against Benin before two goals -his firsts in open play- and two assists at Lesotho.
That's six goal contributions in five games since replacing Ighalo at the AFCON third place playoff match.
The Super Eagles are currently blessed with a huge crop of young talent that promises a golden generation in Nigerian football. The likes of Wilfred Ndidi, Samuel Chukwueze, Alex Iwobi, Joe Aribo, Ola Aina and Semi Ajayi have stirred hope amongst Nigeria fans.
Osimhen is proving the perfect spearhead of the team.
Crucially, these youngsters are producing results after commendable draws with the third and twenty second-best nations in the world, Brazil and Ukraine. The Super Eagles also secured maximum points from their opening AFCON qualifying group games.
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| Head coach Gernot Rohr has a young, talented team at his disposal. (thenationonlineng.net) |
With Osimhen upfront showing an ability to create as well as put the ball in the back of the net, he is of prime importance to Nigeria fans.
Having joined Lille for €14Million, his current valuation would be much higher considering his stock rising as an international goalscorer.
In truth, his blonde hairdo almost symbolizes his crown as the Prince of Nigerian football.
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