Nigeria and Napoli veteran striker Victor Osimhen scored his 100th career goal on Friday, February 17 during Napoli’s 2-0 triumph against Sassuolo, becoming one of the five fastest footballers to achieve this feat.
After scoring in just 197 appearances, the Super Eagles forward attained this height faster than the 2022 World Cup winner Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Osimhen surpassed the Argentine World Cup winner Lionel Messi as the PSG star scored his century after 210 games, and in comparison to the Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo, the world’s greatest goalscorer bagged his ton after 301 games, while Ibrahimovic reached his ton after 245 games.
The 24-year-old blazing striker, Osimhen made his professional career at Bundesliga outfit Wolfsburg in 2017, before moving to enjoy a loan spell at Belgian side Charleroi, where he scored 12 goals in 25 appearances.
Thereafter, he proceeded to the Ligue 1 club Lille where he flourished before establishing himself as one of world football’s deadliest strikers in Napoli, where he scored 47 goals for the Serie A side in just 85 games.
And Eighteen of those stunning goals came this season, with the Nigerian now sitting six goals clear aloft the Serie A Golden Boot ladder.
Meanwhile, Napoli are also in formidable form this season, topping the Italian first division with 18 points ahead of second-place Inter Milan, thanks to the superb Nigerian striker’s goalscoring form.
Certainly, one could say Osimhen has been instrumental in Napoli’s rise to the top of Serie A, scoring in all seven of Napoli’s previous league matches, boosting them to go undefeated since after the World Cup break.
Victor Osimhen’s prolific start to his football career means the veteran forward now ranks as the third fastest player to score century career goals.
This means that two big names stand in front of the Nigerian, one is 2022 World Cup golden boot winner Kylian Mbappe, who racked up 100 goals after 180 games.
And the other player who ranks as number one is none other than Manchester City’s Erling Haaland, whose scoring spree at former clubs Borussia Dortmund, RB Salzburg, and Molde enabled him to surpass his ton in just 146 matches.
Victor Osimhen, whose electric form has seen him score 19 goals in 23 appearances in all competitions for Serie A toppers Napoli this season has registered 15 goals in 22 appearances for national side Nigeria.
Victor Osimhen’s record-breaking feats have earned him admiration and increased value, making him the number one target for many top clubs around Europe.
Long-time admirers Manchester United, who have been targeting a move for the Napoli forward later in the summer, could see the Red Devils bid a whopping £107m to secure his services but Napoli are not willing to sell him.
What are your thoughts on Victor Osimhen’s form of late? Do you think he would thrive in the Premier League?
