Osimhen thanks Galatasaray medical team after returning with derby goal

Nigeria forward Victor Osimhen praised Galatasaray’s medical team for helping him to return from injury and scoring in the 3-0 Turkish Süper Lig victory over city rivals Fenerbahçe at RAMS Park on Sunday.

Osimhen, who recently returned from injury, put Galatasaray ahead five minutes before halftime with a composed finish, marking his 13th league goal of the campaign.

Fenerbahçe had an early opportunity to take the lead, but Anderson Talisca failed to convert from the penalty spot in the 11th minute. Osimhen thought he had added a second in the 53rd minute, but the effort was ruled out for offside.

‘I wanted to start as soon as possible’

“First of all, I want to thank Dr. Yener and the medical team very much. They really did a great job and ensured my best possible return. Of course, it wasn’t possible to return at 100% immediately,” Osimhen told Galatasaray website.

“I wanted to start as soon as possible, but they also prepared me very well psychologically. My teammates also believed in me. Today, it wasn’t just about my return, but it was important for the whole team to fight well and give the right reaction to our fans.

“We disappointed our fans in that match. I am proud of the game we showed as a team and I am happy about the victory.”

On having a good record scoring in the derby, Osimhen said: “You know, I believe I can score against any team. If the chance comes, it’s my job, and I think I do it well.

“But first, we need to congratulate the team. We showed how mentally prepared we are, and we can say that we are now much closer to our goal of winning the championship.”

Osimhen added: “Personally, I don’t think it makes much difference. Samsunspor is a very high-quality team, we know that. Our morale has improved after this match, but we will want to win every match from now on.

“Besides the championship, we want to win every match to finish the season in the best way possible. I believe we will fight with determination. We will respect every opponent. The match against Samsunspor will be a very good one. I know they are a tough opponent, but we will prepare well for them.”

‘I want to protect this emblem’

Asked about his future, Osimhen who signed for Galatasaray on a permanent deal from Serie A outfit Napoli said: “I’ve said this many times, but I won’t tire of saying it.

“I’ll say it again and again: this club, with its management, its coach, its fans, and everyone around it, deserves my love and respect immensely. As long as I have the opportunity, I want to protect this emblem in every way possible.

 

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“I truly say this from the bottom of my heart. I want to fight my best, with determination, in every match, and I want to always protect this emblem. At the same time, I want to fight for my teammates as well.”

Osimhen added: “Obviously, after losing away from home, we needed to prepare for the next match with more determination. We talked about this in the locker room.

“We said that the match was behind us, finished, and that we needed to put it behind us. We tried to motivate ourselves in this way. Our coach and his team also motivated us very well. I think we fought really well in the last training session and in all the training sessions before this match.

“I can even say we had higher-tempo, tougher, and more tiring training sessions than for this match. I say this with respect to our opponent, but I can say that we got more tired in training. As Galatasaray, we want to continue like this until the end of the season.”

Osimhen returned ahead of schedule on 22 April, coming off the bench for between 12 and 17 minutes against Gençlerbirliği before making his full mark on the biggest fixture in Turkish football.

With three rounds of the regular season remaining, Galatasaray sit on 74 points from 31 matches and are firmly on course to retain the Super Lig title for a fourth consecutive season.