Barcelona nightmare exposes Nigeria's Osimhen as offside landlord with unwanted record
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Victor Osimhen was caught offside three times against Barcelona.

Barcelona nightmare exposes Nigeria's Osimhen as offside landlord with unwanted record

Izuchukwu Akawor 15:58 - 13.03.2024

Nigeria's Victor Osimhen had a bad day at the office as Napoli were dumped out of the Champions League by Barcelona.

If there were any doubts about Victor Osimhen's status as the undisputed "Landlord" of the offside flag, his nightmare performance against Barcelona should have erased them for good.

The Nigerian striker was trapped offside on no fewer than three occasions during Napoli's 3-1 second leg defeat to the Catalan giants - a result that saw them exit the Champions League 4-2 on aggregate.

Osimhen’s offside struggles 

The performance extended Osimhen's wretched offside record this season to a scarcely believable 35 times across all competitions. A statistic that no other player across Europe's top 5 leagues or the Champions League can match.

The 25-year-old already held the ignoble record for most offside calls at the recent Africa Cup of Nations too, with nine indiscretions in just seven games.

Victor Osimhen and Pau Cubarsi had an intense night in Spain.
Pau Cubarsi tackles Osimhen || Imago

Against Barcelona's teenage titan Pau Cubarsi, Osimhen looked like a tenant constantly being evicted from the Landlord's property as his timing and runs were persistently bamboozled.

While Osimhen's propensity to stray offside is partly due to his game built on blistering pace, repeatedly failing to time runs correctly could be hampering his development.

Victor Osimhen is the offside king.
Victor Osimhen scored just one goal at the AFCON 2023 || Imago

The Barcelona defeat highlighted his limitations, with Osimhen managing just one shot, losing nine duels, and winning a solitary aerial battle from six attempts in a performance as ineffective as they come.

Landlord or not, Napoli's iconic frontman cannot keep paying such regular offside rent if he's to fulfil his potential as one of world football's elite marksmen.

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