The Italian manager sees similarities between the Nigerian star and Diego Maradona.
Victor Osimhen scored a late equaliser to save Napoli a point in their Serie A game against Cagliari on Monday. The Partenopei had the chance to leapfrog Inter and claim the second spot in Serie A by beating the Islanders.
However, they were on the verge of a surprise defeat before Osimhen saved them with a brilliant header. Luciano Spalletti’s side are now preparing to face Barcelona in the second leg of their Europa League playoff on Thursday.
The Italian manager has spoken about Osimhen’s special qualities ahead of the crucial game.
He said (via SoccerNews): “With that header against Cagliari, he proved to have a sort of animal fury which is much-needed in key moments,
“Maradona had the same thing and somebody else should have it in our team.
“You can see Osimhen has it when he faces his opponents. He has outstanding characteristics and some extra qualities that are not easy to find in other players.”
Can Napoli stun Barca on home soil?
Napoli managed to finish the first leg against Barcelona with a 1-1 draw at Camp Nou. Barcelona went on to crush Valencia 4-1 after that game while Napoli drew 1-1 against Cagliari.
With an in-form Osimhen leading their attacking unit, Napoli can hope to hurt Barcelona in the counter-attacks. On the other hand, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been on fire since joining the Blaugrana. We expect both sides to score in the upcoming game.
The odds for the overall game slightly favour Barcelona to go to Europa League’s next round.
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