By Daniel Edu
Napoli’s manager, Rudi Garcia, has aligned with Victor Osimhen, the Super Eagles of Nigeria forward, in acknowledging the team’s need for improvement in their attacking performance during their recent league match.
Garcia made a strong start as Napoli’s manager, guiding the team to a 3-1 victory over Frosinone in the Serie A opener for the 2023-2024 season. In their subsequent home game against Sassuolo, the team secured a 2-0 victory.
In this game, Napoli’s midfielder, Kvicha Kvaratskhelia, registered his first assist of the season by setting up Giovanni Di Lorenzo’s goal. Victor Osimhen, the team’s key player, also found the net from the penalty spot.
The final score could have been 3-0 in Napoli’s favor had Giacomo Raspadori not missed the penalty, which Osimhen voluntarily relinquished to him.
Despite Osimhen’s goal and a clean sheet win, the 24-year-old Nigerian striker, who contributed significantly to Napoli’s Scudetto win last season with 26 goals and five assists in 32 games, expressed his frustration over missed scoring opportunities during the match.
After the game, Osimhen was captured on camera engaging in a heated argument with his teammates about the missed chances.
“He (Osimhen) is absolutely right!” Garcia conveyed to DAZN.
“We secured the victory and gained six points; we hardly faced any risks, which is positive, but we definitely could have performed better in attack. I believe less than 20 percent of our shots were on target today, so there’s no magical solution here; if you don’t hit the target, you don’t score goals.”
In the ongoing 2023-2024 season, Victor Osimhen has already netted three goals in two league matches. He is anticipated to be on the field again on Saturday, September 2, when Napoli faces Lazio at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.