Super Eagles attacker, Victor Osimhen laboured hard on Friday at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi where Nigeria forced the Black Stars to a goalless draw.
Osimhen was unable to score on the night and had a difficult game as he dealt with the central defensive pair of Daniel Amartey and Alexander Djiku.
The Napoli striker revealed to Elegbete TV that the Ghanaian centre backs constantly pressed on him hard as they got instructed by the assistant coach.
”Mostly the assistant coach will come from the bench and say ‘go hard on him. Come on him, Amartey and the other guy (Djiku). They tried to do the assignment very well but they don’t know we have deadly players that can get the job done. We were really happy with our performance.”
William Troost-Ekong, Super Eagles captain on the night had revealed that they were afraid of Osimhen and doubled on him throughout the game.
“They sometimes struggled to move the ball quickly. But I think it was great work from Ghana, but I think everybody was quite scared of Victor [Osimhen]. They were two against one most of the time [against him].”
Narrating the whole Ghanaian experience, Osimhen said it was understandable being African football but it was surprising when they landed and were presented with a scaffold. He said it was funny, as some of them also had heavy luggage and had to jump from the plane.
He said there was a traffic logjam on their way to the stadium and Ghanaian fans tried to intimidate them. While the moves made by the local fans in Ghana was understandable, Osimhen added that the way they were treated “wasn’t professional”.
On allegations of simulation in the game, Osimhen said;
”I’m not the kind of player that makes simulations but when you hit me, for sure I’ll go down. When the referee don’t call the foul, it’s normal to react as a player. I don’t care what people are saying about me. The game was a massive one. The whole Ghanaian fans came out for their team, and we were pushed to get something out of the game.
”I wasn’t intimidated by the crowd as I’d played in San Siro where it was sold out. I know the kind of pressure it is. Kudos to the team, chief coach and back room staff for motivating us ahead of the game.”
