Osimhen Vindicated: Why Juve nightmare proves Super Eagles star was right to be angry in the first leg

Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen was angry after a 5-2 victory in Turkey last week. His teammates thought he was overreacting. Turin almost proved them right for the wrong reasons.

After one of the most dramatic Champions League nights in recent memory, Galatasaray are through to the Round of 16 for the first time in 12 years, but they made absolutely certain it would not be straightforward.

A side that travelled to Italy with a three-goal cushion found themselves level on aggregate after 90 minutes, staring at elimination, before Osimhen and Baris Alper Yilmaz broke Juventus hearts in extra time to complete a qualification that had no right to be this complicated.

The man who saw it coming? The same one his teammates thought was overreacting after the first leg.

Luciano Spalletti sent Juventus out at the Juventus Stadium with one instruction, make it an uncomfortable night. For 90 minutes, they did exactly that.

The Old Lady clawed back three goals to level the tie at 5-5 on aggregate, transforming what should have been a comfortable qualification evening into a full-blown crisis.

The travelling Galatasaray supporters, who had arrived expecting a celebration, spent the final minutes of normal time watching their side hanging on by their fingernails.

Three goals surrendered. A three-goal lead erased. The Turkish champions were on the verge of one of the most spectacular collapses in Champions League history.

Then extra time arrived. And Osimhen reminded everyone exactly why you do not give him a point to prove.

The Nigerian broke the deadlock in extra time, assisted by Baris Alper Yilmaz, who then added a second to finally, definitively, put the tie to bed. Galatasaray were through. The nightmare was over.

But the lesson had already been delivered.

Cast your mind back to Rams Park. 5-2. A historic Champions League night. Galatasaray celebrating one of their greatest European performances.

And Osimhen, furious on the pitch, berating teammates who could not understand what he was so upset about. Now they understand.

Noa Lang, one of the heroes that night, offered a revealing insight into what exactly the Nigerian had been demanding.

"He wanted us to deliver more crosses from the wing," Lang explained to the press. "Then I said to him: 'You know, I'm always looking for him, plus we've got an extra man. We just need to keep the ball in the team and wait for the right moment.' But that's all part of the game. I'm a winner too. That matter's well and truly closed now."

Lang's response was reasonable in the moment. In a 5-2 victory with a three-goal cushion heading to Turin, keeping the ball and managing the game felt like the sensible approach. Why chase a sixth goal when three is already enough?

Because three, as Wednesday night proved, was not enough.

Osimhen, even in the middle of a historic victory, was already thinking about Turin. Already calculating that a Juventus side of that quality, at home, in front of their own fans, with everything to play for, would come back swinging.

Already knowing that a three-goal lead felt comfortable until it suddenly did not.

He wanted more goals. His teammates wanted to manage the game. Turin showed which instinct was correct.

Lang was gracious enough to close the chapter cleanly - "that matter's well and truly closed now" and there is something admirable about a dressing room that can have that kind of honest disagreement and emerge stronger on the other side.

But the broader point stands. Galatasaray are through to the Round of 16 for the first time in 12 years. They nearly were not. And the player who sensed the danger earliest, who demanded more when his teammates were satisfied, who refused to let a 5-2 lead feel like enough, that player scored the goal in extra time that saved them.

Osimhen was angry after winning 5-2. Turin explained why. Next time, his teammates might listen a little sooner.