Serie A: Napoli captain calls Victor Osimhen out after altercation with Rudi Garcia

Osimhen was displeased with Rudi Garcia’s decision to take him off in Napoli’s draw away to Bologna, after the forward missed a penalty

Napoli Captain, Giovanni Di Lorenzo has called out Victor Osimhen after the striker exchanged words with Rudi Garcia, as he was displeased he was taken off, Soccernet.ng reports.

The Super Eagles forward scored a hat-trick during the International break, as Nigeria defeated São Tomé and Príncipe at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium, but has struggled for goals since then, drawing blanks in his last three outings.

With the 24-year-old Ballon d’Or nominee visibly frustrated by his inability to help his team convert their chances, Napoli travelled to Bologna with the hopes of a win, after a positive outcome in their midweek clash against Braga.

The game took another turn entirely for last season’s Serie A Golden Boot winner, as he had just two shots on target, and to compound things, he missed a penalty with about twenty minutes to go.

Napoli’s coach, Rudi Garcia opted to take the forward off with four minutes to go, replacing him with Giovanni Simeone, a decision that didn’t go down well with the Nigerian, as he exchanged words with the Frenchman on the touchline.

In quotes revealed by Calcio Napoli, Di Lorenzo spoke about the team’s form in the league. He said;

“We are not happy with the result. The mood is not the best, we wanted to win again in the league. Now there is no time but to keep thinking about this game, you have to think about the next.”

The Gli Azzuri captain commented on the altercation on the touchline, between Osimhen and the teams’ coach.

“These become more noticeable when things go wrong. In these moments we do not need such attitudes, we must be united and focused on the goal. We’ll talk to the team and the coach to solve it.” he added. 

Napoli’s draw against Bologna leaves them with eight points from their first five games, three less than they had after five Matchdays last season.