Weekly Round Up: Samuel Chukwueze Snub, Osimhen’s POTM Award Plus Other Talking Points

There have been a lot of talking points in football both at the international and club level over the past week. From Osimhen winning the Ligue 1 player of the month, Chukwueze being left out of the Golden Boy nominees list, Real Madrid’s shocking defeat among many others, Soccernet.ng takes a look at some of the big headlines of last week.

Uzoho Out For Six Months:  The AC Omonia goalkeeper picked up an injury in Super Eagles draw against Brazil last Sunday and it is set to keep him out for at least six months. The injury comes at a time when he is trying to get his career back on track following a difficult campaign last season.

With this setback, Gernot Rohr will have to do without the services of Uzoho for a chunk of Super Eagles AFCON 2021 qualifiers which begins next month.  We wish Uzoho a speedy recovery.

Osimhen Wins Ligue 1 Player Of The Month: When he was announced as a potential replacement for Nicolas Pepe, there were doubts if Osimhen has the mettle to survive in Ligue 1. However, two months and counting into the season, the 20-year-old has not only proved he is capable of matching Pepe’s numbers, but he has also cleared all lingering doubts.

He is currently the joint top scorer in the French top division with seven goals and was named Ligue 1 player of the month of September. The Super Eagles star picked up the gong after scoring twice and providing two assists last month.  It is definitely the first of many for the Nigerian international who also picked up Lille’s player of the month of September.

Chukwueze Snubbed For Ansu Fati: The final 20 man list for the Golden Boy awards was released last weeks and like any other award, it was not without controversies.

For Nigerian fans, a lot of them were upset the country’s golden boy, Samuel Chukwueze was not included in the final shortlist, while Ansu Fati who was not even in the 40 man list managed to sneak himself in. 

His inclusion begs for questioning considering the fact that he’s only been around for about six games this season, while Chukwueze has been terrorizing La Liga’s defence since he was given his debut last season.

One can only question what the people at Tuttosport are smoking at their base in Italy.

Pressure Mounting On Zidane: The clock is ticking on Zidane’s future at the Santiago Bernabeu after Real Madrid slumped to defeat at Real Mallorca. Los Blancos who were missing Eden Hazard went down 1-0 to a Lago Junior seventh-minute opener.  

The result means Madrid lost hold of the top spot to rivals, Barcelona who defeated Eibar 3-0 earlier on Saturday. It also piles more pressure on Zidane who has been criticised this season for Madrid’s below-par performances.

Liverpool And Man Utd End In Stalemate: The Reds were favourites going into the encounter given United’s form. However, the Red Devils held their own against their more superior opponents. Marcus Rashford gave United the lead in the 36th minute, but Adam Lallana’s close range finish five minutes from time ensured Klopp’s men unbeaten record continued.