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… Nigerian star says it’s great honour to receive Drogba’s twit
By Emma Jemegah
Premier League hottest striker, Manchester City’s Erling Haaland is awe of Nigeria and Napoli striker, Victor Osimhen’s rising profile and recently requested the Nigeria international to send his signed jersey as memorabilia with the Norwegian sending his.
Osimhen may not be quit as prolific as Haaland but he’s arguably a more complete No. 9. He’s technically outstanding, powerful in the air, quick, athletic and intelligent just like the Man City man.
And the idea of Osimhen vs Haaland duel for the Premier League Golden Boot is thrilling yet Osimhen reveals that the pair already share great mutual respect.
He is on good terms with Man City striker, Erling Haaland, who he could be in direct competition with in the Premier League next season
In an interview with Sportsmail, Osimhen reveals his admiration for Haaland and how he got to swap shirt with him.
“I play with Leo Ostigard at Napoli, who is very good friends with Haaland and plays for Norway with him,” Osimhen explains.
“I am a fan of the Bundesliga so I’ve followed him for a while and every weekend he seems to score two, three, four goals.
“Ostigard spoke to me a lot about him, how hard he trained, then one day he said: ‘If you want, I can bring you his shirt.’ I said: ‘Of course, bro.’
“So he spoke to Haaland, who also asked for my shirt, so we swapped them through Ostigard.
He is one of the best of his generation so to be compared with him – and considered one of the best strikers in the world – only inspires me to do more.
In his hotel room for his first major interview with a UK media outlet, Osimhen delivers a fascinating account of his journey to becoming one of the best strikers in the world.
From growing up in difficult circumstances in the Lagos suburbs, Osimhen sold oranges and bottled water on the city’s streets to make ends meet, and saw his local football pitches shut down.
He moved to German club Wolfsburg aged 17 and found the separation from friends and family ‘traumatising’.
After gradual improvement at Charleroi in Belgium and French club Lille, Osimhen’s career has taken off in Italy, where he has 25 goals in 29 games in all competitions this season.
In the interview, the Napoli top scorer reveals how Didier Drogba has became an inspiration, one of the icons of the Premier League.
“I have always supported Drogba and I have huge love and admiration for him,” he gushes.
“I remember when he scored the equaliser in the 2012 Champions League Final, an amazing header, and the way I celebrated was as though I had scored the goal. My friends knew I was obsessed with Drogba.
“When I scored 10 goals and won the Golden Boot at the Under-17 World Cup in 2015, one of the Nigeria staff showed me a tweet from Drogba. It said ‘Congratulations Victor. I wish you all the best for the future.’
“I was shocked. I never believed someone like Didier Drogba would tweet those words to a young aspiring striker. It gave me a whole new motivation to succeed.
‘Trust me, he has been so helpful. One morning last year I woke up and checked my Instagram, and found messages to me from him, complimenting me, but saying I still had a long way to go. It’s amazing to be in contact with him.
“I try to model my game on his and there are a lot of things I can take from his game and add to my own, so there is nothing better for a young player.
“He’s a hero in his country, he’s played to the highest level, won a lot and made African youngsters dream. He’s a busy man but whenever he sees my messages on Instagram he replies immediately. It’s a great feeling.’
A shining light of the European game this season, the Napoli forward is an idol in his native Nigeria and is expected to be one of the hottest properties of the summer transfer market after his stunning performances took his club to the brink of their first league title since the days of Diego Maradona.
The 24-year-old is now valued at a minimum £150million and said recently it was his ‘dream’ to play in the Premier League.
Osimhen is happy in Italy but with Manchester United and Chelsea among those who may be looking for a specialist centre forward at the end of the season, he will be top of many lists.
On the love from Napoli fans, Osimhen says “Sometimes they come to the players’ houses to show their love, as late as 2am. Naples bleeds for football and I have imagined many times how the city will explode if we can win the Scudetto (league title). We have chances to go far in the Champions League, too.”
