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The Super Eagles striker describes his goal against Benin, revealing unique events before the goal, including how he fooled the Benin defence with his words.
It took Osimhen just six minutes after coming on for Victor Boniface to find the net against the Cheetahs of Benin at Godswill Akpabio Stadium last Saturday.
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The new Galatasaray striker took his time to tell the story of the goal and how good communication and practice were rewarded on the pitch.
Osimhen on what he said to Semi Ajayi for the goal
The Super Eagles’ second goal against Benin came after a Wilfred Ndidi cross from the right-half space that was headed towards Semi Ajayi and Osimhen, who were in the box.
However, Ajayi opted to leave the ball, and Osimhen moved smartly to take it one time on a half volley into the ground and beyond the goalkeeper.
Describing the goal to Counter Attack Podcast, the striker revealed that himself, Ola Aina, Taiwo Awoniyi, and Ndidi practiced that routine more than 10 times in training.
He went further to explain Ajayi’s role in the goal: “When he [Ndidi] did the cross, Simi was also going towards the ball. If he hits it, he can score, or maybe the goalkeeper parries it”
“But I saw that I had a clearer chance than him, and so I told him ‘file file’ in Yoruba, and he left it”
“The moment he left the ball, I smashed it on the floor.”
The striker went ahead to reveal that ‘File’ means leave it in Yoruba.
Despite being born in England, Ajayi can speak his mother tongue (Yoruba) to a good extent, while Osimhen grew up in Lagos, a state in the South West, which is a Yoruba-speaking region of Nigeria.
Nigeria prepares to take on Rwanda
Osimhen, eager to extend his scoring streak, will be aiming for a starting spot to improve his chances of netting in back-to-back matches for Nigeria for the first time since June 2022, when he found the net against Sierra Leone and Sao Tome within four days.
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