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Extended Clip - Can Napoli Striker Victor Osimhen Become Better Than Didier Drogba?
1.2k Plays3 years ago
After Roma coach José Mourinho likened Napoli striker Victor Osimhen with Didier Drogba, Nima Tavallaey and Carlo Garganese discuss if the Nigerian international could emulate and even surpass the Chelsea legend's career achievements?
This is an extended clip from this weeks free Monday episode of The Italian Football Podcast which is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google podcasts.
To listen to ALL complete episodes of The Italian Football Podcast, go to Patreon.com/TIFP and become a Patron for only $2.99 USD per month (excluding VAT).
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Transcript
Osimhen's Remarkable Goal for Napoli
00:00:02
Speaker
Welcome to the Italian football podcast. And then, of course, the best player of all, and we have to come to him, is Victor Ossiman, who was just, again, I mean, that goal that he scored to put Napoli 1-0 up. I mean, that might be goal of the season. It was that good. I mean, so beautiful. The skill level.
00:00:26
Speaker
To chest that down, everything about it, but to chest it down, knee it up and volley it all in one move in such quick succession. I saw some criticise in the Roman defence, how can you let a player take three touches in the six yard box and not get a challenge in? Which is maybe fair enough, but at the same time, if you look at the pace at which the speed at which he'd done it all in one movement,
00:00:52
Speaker
I mean, it was so fast. I mean, that was pure world class.
Goal Comparisons: Osimhen vs. Mitoma
00:00:57
Speaker
That was. And it's funny because everybody was going on about the goal that...
00:01:01
Speaker
kind of similar goal that Metoma scored for Brighton to beat Liverpool earlier in the day, saying, you know, what an amazing goal, goal of the weekend. Well, I see men watch that goal and then took it up another level with his goal. I think both of those goals were poor defending as well. I mean, it was brilliant individual skill, but it was also poor defending by Liverpool, who were nine players ball watching.
Roma's Defensive Challenges
00:01:25
Speaker
And with Roma, Spinazzola and
00:01:29
Speaker
And Roger Ibanez, I mean, Jesus, they really, really, really made mistakes there. And now, and Zalevsky was off. And Roma have, look, Roma are, you know, Mourinho's turned them into an organized side, but there are individual quality issues defensively. And I think, you know, we can't keep past that. And I think Roma will have to address that in order to take that next step.
00:01:54
Speaker
Yeah, not getting away from not getting away from Osman after the
Comparing Osimhen to Drogba
00:01:57
Speaker
game. Mourinho said that he was as good or he is as good as Didier Drogba, who obviously Mourinho coached during the peak of his career at Chelsea when Drogba was
00:02:10
Speaker
For a period, probably the best number nine in the world, I think it's fair to say, for certainly for a period. For a monster. Yeah, and he was an absolute monster. So I guess the question is, can Osseman really be as good as Jogba? Can he emulate Jogba? Can he even become better than Jogba? So the way I look at it is,
00:02:31
Speaker
If anything, I think I think Osman has a head start on Drogba here because Drogba was 26 when he joined Chelsea. He did have that outstanding season with Marseille when he took them to the UEFA Cup Final and then they lost in the final, didn't they? And then he joined Chelsea, but he was
00:02:52
Speaker
He was 28 until he was first two seasons at Chelsea. He was kind of good, but he wasn't amazing. He wasn't even necessarily always a first-choice player. He was 28 until he absolutely exploded into a world-class striker.
00:03:09
Speaker
Osseman has only just turned 24. He's four years younger than Drogba when Drogba really became an established world-class star. I think Osseman is already, for me, he's already a world-class star now.
Drogba's Legacy and Osimhen's Potential
00:03:25
Speaker
So he has a head start on Jogba and I think there are many similarities obviously between them, physically, technically, I think they are very comparable. I think where Jogba, you know, obviously Jogba has the advantage when it comes to from a mental point of view, so strong, so consistent and his performances in the big matches, Jogba, insane. I mean, if you go through the history of football and find the players that were the best big game players,
00:03:55
Speaker
finals, scoring in semi-finals, quarter-finals, title deciders, when it really matters at the key clutch moment, Drogba's right up there. He's up there with the very best. Ronaldo, Messi, Pele, people in Zaghi is right up there as well. He's right up there, Drogba. So that is what will obviously be very, very hard for Osman to emulate.
Osimhen's Unique Skills and Future Prospects
00:04:17
Speaker
If he's going to emulate Drogba, then he needs to be playing in Champions League finals and cup finals and title deciders. And obviously, until now, he hasn't
00:04:25
Speaker
He hasn't been in a position to play those coming games. I think in terms of comparing him with Drogba, I think Osseman is more technical than Drogba. I think Drogba was physically stronger.
00:04:40
Speaker
And and and was was a great, you know, had great movement. But I look I look at Ossimian and I think he's got much more silky movement. He's much more difficult to mark because of the fact that he can shift his weight from left to right much easier. I think he's got great technique. I don't think he's as good as Drogba was in the air.
00:04:57
Speaker
But there are similarities. He's still pretty great. He's still great. Yeah, he is good. He's absolutely good. But I just don't think... I think he's a more lean, technical Drogba. And I think... And his movement is...
00:05:13
Speaker
He is such a difficult player to mark. You just look at his non-stop movement, how he's always available as a passing option. Even when he's back against the goal, his ability to turn things around just on one touch
00:05:29
Speaker
his ability to know always where his other players are, the link-up with Karatschelya. No, this guy is, you know, he is, it's a world, it is a future world-class, if not already world-class player. I think after Lewandowski and Haaland this season, and to some extent maybe Harry Kane,
00:05:55
Speaker
I can understand that based on this season alone because I think he has this energy about him and his unstoppability.
00:06:08
Speaker
Nice. It's the complete front game. I mean, what else? I mean, we said, you know, up until this season, there were question marks about him in the big matches where he scores in all the big games. Again, he scored another big game easily, you know, consistency, finishing sometimes, you know, snatch. But, you know, now he's got 14 Serie A goals. He's the top scorer in Serie A. No penalties, no penalties, 14 Serie A goals. I don't think that that can't be understated how impressive that is to have already scored 14 Serie A goals without taking penalties.