Osimhen’s goal sets Napoli record in Serie A

Victor Osimhen scored the only goal as Napoli defeated Roma 1-0 in Serie A on Sunday night, setting a new Partenopei record of 11 straight victories. The hard-fought win at the Stadio Olimpico moved them three points clear at the top of the table.

The last time Napoli recorded 10 straight victories was in 1986 when the late Diego Maradona was captain.

It was a tremendous effort from Osimhen that finally paid dividends in the 80th minute after he ran on to a pass from Matteo Politano, got the better of Smalling, and produced a swerving effort that left Rui Patricio stranded.

This came after a glaring miss from Osimhen in the 70th minute. Having collected a pass from Hirving Lozano, Osimhen dragged his effort wide of the right post.

Piotr Zielinski blocked Mady Camara’s shot on the edge of the Napoli box, and the ball broke for Lozano, who drove at the three-man Roma defence before passing to Osimhen.

James Horncastle, a BT Sport pundit, described Osimhen’s performance as one that was key in both boxes as the Nigerian forward when not helping his team clear the danger from Roma’s set pieces was putting himself about against Chris Smalling and unnerving the former Manchester United defender.

Napoli are unbeaten in the 2022/23 season after playing 15 matches in all competitions, scoring 42 goals and conceding 12. They have also proved their champions’ credentials with away wins at Lazio, AC Milan, and now Roma-all top six contenders.

In the post-match interview, Osimhen said it was a special victory. “We have a big solidarity in the team and every starting player and the players on the bench know what to do when given the chance. And we just want to keep on going like this,” Osimhen added.

After scoring the winner against Bologna last weekend, Osimhen’s goal at the Olimpico is his third in consecutive matches and he revealed Luciano Spalletti has been the key component for their all-conquering form. “We just need to continue carrying out his [Spalletti] instruction and to keep the momentum and continue to go each game, knowing it will not be easy.”

Osimhen has four goals in eight appearances for Napoli this season. Their next match is against Rangers in the Champions League on Wednesday.