Osimhen scores as Galatasaray wins first UCL match

Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen broke his Champions League goal drought on Wednesday. Galatasaray came from behind to defeat Lille 4-2 in northern France. This was their first win in the competition this season.

Osimhen scored against his old club just after the hour mark. He finished off a quick counter-attack to help secure the victory. This was his first goal in the Champions League since February.

Galatasaray needed to bounce back after losing 4-1 to Barcelona last week. They took the lead just 66 seconds into the match. Yunus Akgun reacted quickly to a poor header from Lille defender Alexsandro and scored high into the net.

Lille equalized in the seventh minute. Soriba Diaoune ran onto a pass from Alexsandro, rounded goalkeeper Ugurcan Cakir, and slotted the ball into the empty net.

Midway through the first half, Galatasaray got a penalty. Lille goalkeeper Berke Ozer seemed to bring down Osimhen. But after a Video Assistant Referee review, it showed that Ozer had won the ball.

In the 39th minute, Diaoune put Lille ahead with a quick finish after a save. But Galatasaray leveled the score just before halftime. Aleksey Batrakov headed the ball in unmarked from a Roland Sallai cross.

The visitors took the lead again seven minutes into the second half. Lucas Torreira scored with a near-post header from a corner that had a final touch off Ozer. Osimhen then scored the fourth goal for Galatasaray.

Before the match, Lille head coach Davide Ancelotti warned his team to work together to stop Osimhen. Unfortunately for him, they could not contain the Nigerian striker.

Osimhen played for Lille during the 2019/20 season. He scored 18 goals in 38 games before moving to Napoli in 2020. This season, he has scored seven goals and provided three assists for Galatasaray.

Lille has now lost both of their home Champions League matches this season after leading. They are still without a point. They will travel to Norway to play Bodo/Glimt on Tuesday, November 3. Galatasaray will host Stuttgart on the same day.