TikTok video row: Amuneke counsels Osimhen on Napoli future

Former African Footballer of the Year, Emmanuel Amuneke, feels his protégé, Victor Osimhen, must keep his emotions in check and face his football career squarely even in the face of provocation following insulting video that Napoli released on TikTok.

While one video reportedly cantered on his penalty miss during Sunday’s goalless draw against Bologna, another video from the club’s account, which has been circulated online and since deleted, compared Osimhen to a ‘coconut’ – widely viewed as a racial slur.

Never known to suffer fools gladly, Osimhen has since pulled down the majority of photos of him wearing a Napoli shirt from his Instagram, with a single post remaining.

But Amuneke, who gave Osimhen his breakthrough with the FIFA U-17 World Cup-winning Golden Eaglets of 2015, said such faux pas as indiscreetly done by Napoli is not uncommon in football, adding that the Nigeria international striker must be tactful in handling the messy situation.

“I’s unfortunate, but some things like this happen in football,” Amuneke, who endured some torrid period towards the end of his contract at Barcelona, told NationSport. “No matter what, that (Tik Tok video) shouldn’t bother him.”

Yet words are rife that the incident has caused serious doubt over the relationship between last season’s top scorer in Serie A and the reigning Italian champions, just as Osimhen’s agent, Roberto Calenda, has threatened to take legal action against the Partenopei over the vexed TikTok video.

“Let him (Osimhen) remain calm and focused, and he should not allow his emotions to control him,” Amuneke further counselled .

Last season, Osimhen fired Napoli to a first league title in over 30 years and has scored an impressive 62 goals in 107 appearances for the Serie A side. He was subject of interest from a host of big European clubs, as well as a mind-blowing $154 million offer from Saudi Premier League side, Al Hilal.

Whether this recent insulting video will break the marriage between Osimhen and the Partenopei remains to be seen.