Osimhen guns for 50th Partenopei goal in 90th game

Victor Osimhen will aim to score his 50th goal for Napoli when they host Eintracht Frankfurt in Wednesday’s Champions League second leg last-16 tie, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.

The game will also be his 90th for the club since he arrived from Lille in 2020 for a record fee of €80m. The Nigerian has since posted 49 goals and 14 assists in 89 appearances for the Partenopei in all tournaments.

Osimhen, who is expected to lead Napoli’s charge in their bid to reach the last eight for the first time in their history, believes Napoli can go all the way to land the Champions League title.

No Italian team has won the Champions League since Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan in the 2009/10 season and none have reached the final since Juventus did in 2017.

But Osimhen, who has scored twice in four appearances in the competition this season, believes Napoli halt the trend.

“We are doing well this season and I believe we can win the Champions League,” Osimhen told Gazzetta dello Sport.

“I think this is a kind of ‘magical’ season where you cannot put limits on what a team can achieve.

“Do you remember Leicester City? At a certain point, they pushed for European qualification, but eventually, everyone realised that they could actually win the league. And in the end, they won it. It could well be the same with Napoli.”

The Nigerian striker has been outstanding alongside his Napoli teammate Khvicha Kvaratskhelia throughout a campaign in which Napoli appears destined to end their 33-year wait to win the Scudetto with 12 games left to play.

The striker has scored 19 Serie A goals while Kvaratskhelia has 11 this season.

Speaking to Sky Sport Italia on Tuesday, Real Madrid coach, Carlo Ancelotti, gave his thoughts on the Napoli attacking duo.

“Kvaratskhelia is a great player, he is doing well with Osimhen, they are very efficient.”

The former AC Milan coach praised Italian clubs for their performance in the Champions League this season.

He said, “Italian clubs are doing well in the Champions League. There could be three clubs in the quarter-finals, which would be a strong signal to Europe.”