Osimhen's move to Napoli is a step towards greater prospects

Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen has taken a huge career leap with his move to Serie A side Napoli.

New Napoli signee and Super Eagles striker, Victor Osimhen has made the biggest move of his footballing career thus far but this may just prove to be a key to unlocking greater prospects.

After a stellar run with the Golden Eaglets of Nigeria at the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Chile, where he won the Golden Boot and Silver Ball awards, Osimhen joined Bundesliga side Wolfsburg in January of 2017 with hopes of continuing his development.

In Germany, the gangling striker's hopes ran into a ditch as limited playing time threatened his growth at Wolfsburg.

After a disappointing 18 months spell at the club, Osimhen embarked on a search for a team, where he could play regular football and prove to the world that his 10 goals feat in Chile was not a flash in the pan.

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Victor Osimhen has resumed pre-season training session with Napoli (Twitter/@victorosimhen9]

He had trials with Jupiler League sides Zulte Waregem and Club Brugge in the summer of 2018, but both clubs would turn down the opportunity to sign him due to debilitating physical condition resulting from his bout with Malaria.

Another Belgian club, Charleroi offered a way out for the striker, agreeing to take him on a season-long loan. Charleroi turned out to be the perfect opportunity to unlocking Osimhen's immense potentials.

After a cameo debut appearance, Osimhen scored his first professional goal with a backheel against Waasland-Beveren on his full debut. From there on, he never looked back.

He finished the season with 20 goals in 36 matches across all competitions for Charleroi, a feat that caught the attention of Ligue 1 outfit, Lille, who later snapped him up for an undisclosed fee.

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The young striker continued to show his killer instinct in front of goal as he bagged a brace against Nantes on his Ligue 1 debut. Although the season was truncated by the Coronavirus pandemic, Osimhen recorded 18 goals and was named Lille's Player of the Season while also winning the award for the Best African Player in the division.

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As Osimhen's stock continue to rise, it was inevitable that European elite clubs would scurry for the Nigerian's signature. So when reports emerged that the big clubs were showing interests in signing him, everyone was curious about his next port of call.

Some are of the opinion that it was time for the striker to move to a top tier club that would offer him a platform to vie for major titles. For others, a club that would offer him more playing time thereby allowing him to continue his growth would be the most ideal.

However, amongst all the clubs that showed up, Napoli appeared like the most serious and Osimhen has decided to pitch his tent with the Partenopei.

Without any doubts, Napoli are no pushovers as far as Italian football is concerned, although same can't be said when it comes to their pedigree in continental football. But in Naples, Osimhen has found a place where he can fully express himself.

In recent time, Napoli has proven to be the club prominent attacking talents have used as a career springboard. Ever since their return to the top-flight in 2007, President Aurelio De Laurentiis has been very strategic in his choice of player acquisition.

While he has never hidden his intentions of ending Juventus' stranglehold in the league, De Laurentiis characteristically hunt for players that could help, not only to achieve this goal, but also have potential for improvement and ultimately, resale value.

Victor Osimhen has resumed pre-season training session with Napoli (Twitter/@victorosimhen9]

A prime example of this policy is Edinson Cavani.

The Uruguayan joined Napoli in the summer of 2010 after showing a lot of promises playing for fellow Serie A team, Palermo. Cavani grew into a more accomplished striker at Napoli scoring loads of goals and helping the Partenopei secured a return to the Champions League in his first season.

After three seasons, he made the big switch to France joining PSG in a deal believed to be around €64 million, the sixth largest transfer in history at the time.

Before Cavani, Argentina forward, Ezequiel Lavezzi had plied the similar route.

Lavezzi, who transferred to Napoli in 2007, played a major role as the club evolved from a mid-table team to contenders for European places and eventually moved to PSG after five years in Naples.

More recently, Gonzalo Higuain joined the line of strikers who have passed through Napoli en route to a club with higher profile when he joined Juventus in 2016.

The jury is out on whether Osimhen will be able to replicate the performances that convinced Napoli to part with €71 million for his signature.

If this happens, the Nigerian may join the league of strikers whose stints at Napoli propelled them to bigger prospects.

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