Is Victor Osimhen A £100m player?

Victor Osimhen spreads his arms wide in celebration of a Napoli title victory …on Thursday. Photo: BBCSports

As Napoli supporters revel in a first Italian title triumph in 33 years, it is hard to argue that any player has contributed more to capturing that elusive crown than Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen.

Back in 1990, Gli Azzurri’s top scorer was a certain Diego Maradona, who managed 16 goals in 28 Serie A appearances, putting him third on the list for the league that season.

Osimhen, who plays his football in a stadium now named after Maradona, has easily eclipsed that, notching 22 goals in 27 games, including the vital strike that clinched the title in a 1-1 draw with Udinese. He currently leads the Serie A scoring chart, three ahead of his nearest rival, Lautaro Martinez of Inter Milan. He also contributed five Champions League goals, before Napoli were knocked out in the quarter-finals by AC Milan.

‘Goals win games’ is the well-worn phrase in football – and there is no doubt Osimhen’s goals have caught the attention. Having joined Napoli in July 2020 for a fee of around €81m, a record for an African player, daily transfer rumours now link him with all of Europe’s biggest clubs for even bigger fees.

But is the 24-year-old really worth £100m? In a city overlooked by a volcano, Maradona’s fiery temperament and outrageous virtuosity were a match made in heaven for the worshipful Neapolitan faithful who flocked to see one of football’s great artists lead their club’s renaissance in the 1980s.

He wore the captain’s armband when lifting the team’s second Scudetto in 1990 and is so revered in Naples that his number 10 shirt was permanently retired in 2000.

Exhibiting deadly accuracy, Osimhen is more of an ice-in-the-veins