Can Osimhen break Yakubu’s goal record?
When he leads Nigeria’s attack against Saudi Arabia in an international friendly on Friday (today) in Portugal, Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen will be able to see Yakubu Aiyegbeni’s all-time record for goals scored for Nigeria in his sights, according to PUNCH Sports Extra.
With 10 goals in his previous six games, the Napoli striker has been on a roll for the Eagles, making him the team’s top scorer throughout the African Cup of Nations qualifying campaign.
With this achievement, he now has 20 goals in 27 games for Nigeria, one goal short of Yakubu Aiyegbeni’s record of 21 goals in 57 games between 2000 and 2012.
Nigeria’s all-time leading scorer is still the late Rashidi Yekini, with 37 goals. Segun Odegbami, who scored 23 goals in 46 appearances for the national side between 1976 and 1982, is the next best scorer.
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The 24-year-old Osimhen, who has only scored once in six friendly games for the Eagles, will also look to improve his scoring performance against the Green Falcons.
Osimhen scored his first goal for Nigeria from the penalty spot in a 2-2 draw against Ukraine in Dnipro in 2018 after making his competitive debut for the team in a 2-0 loss to South Africa in 2017.
The Napoli player represented Nigeria in the 2019 AFCON in Egypt, however he only played in one game—the third-place match.
Due to COVID-19-related complications, he was unable to participate in the postponed AFCON edition in Cameroon in 2022. However, he began the 2023 AFCON qualification campaign in brilliant form, assisting Nigeria in winning both of their opening two games.
Osimhen scored one goal in the match against Sierra Leone and four more in the 10–0 victory over São Tomé and Príncipe. Osimhen finished the 2023 AFCON qualifiers as top scorer with 10 goals in the rematch against the minnows on September 10 at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium, Uyo. Osimhen scored his second international hat-trick in Nigeria’s 6-0 victory.
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