By Daily Sports Nigeria on September 16, 2023
Nigerian forward Victor Osimhen will be retrning to club action when Napoli visit Serie A new boys Genoa at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris on Saturday (today), PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
Osimhen scored a hat-trick as the Eagles wrapped up the 2023 African Cup of Nations qualifiers with a comfortable 6-0 victory against Sao Tome and Principe at Nest of Champions in Uyo, Akwa-Ibom state, on Sunday ending the qualifying campaign with 15 points, scoring 22 goals, and conceding 4.
Napoli will be hoping to bounce back from a defeat to Lazio last time out.
Last season’s topscorer, Osimhen picked up where he left off this season by scoring three goals in the first two games before he was held at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium where they lost 2-1 to Lazio.
The Partenopei got into several promising situations but could not capitalise on an evening when Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Osimhen could not come up trumps.
The Nigeria international’s confidence however will be at an all time high after he sent three into the back of the net for the Eagles to ensure they had a comfortable result in Uyo and confirm his spot as the the top scorer in the qualifiers with 10 goals, 5 more than Senegal’s Sadio Mane in second.
Genoa have had a tough start to the 2023/24 Serie A season, losing twice in their opening three games, and they now have to find a way past last season’s defending champions.
Gilardino’s team stunned Lazio 1-0 at the Olimpico in gameweek two, but a 4-1 hammering against Fiorentina and a 1-0 loss at Torino have slightly diminished the excitement of beating Maurizio Sarri’s men.
The league’s new boys seek a giant scalp on Saturday when they welcome the Scudetto holders to Liguria in gameweek four.
Securing a stunning victory over the Partenopei will be Serie A’s shock result of the campaign so far, as Gilardino’s men seek their first home victory since returning to the big time.
The Rossoblu lost only one game at the Luigi Ferraris in the Serie B last term, conceding 10 times in 19 games, a statistic they are unlikely to match or better this season.
Source Punch Ng
Posted September 16, 2023
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