The Etihad Standoff: Manchester City beat Galatasaray as Osimhen's quest for European recor​d hits a wall

In an explosive Champions League finale, Manchester City managed to secure a nervy 2-0 victory over Galatasaray, temporarily halting Victor Osimhen’s relentless march toward the history books.

Despite the pre-match hype surrounding the ‘war’ in Manchester, Pep Guardiola’s side managed to stifle the Turkish giants, ending Galatasaray’s hope of an automatic Round of 16 spot and leaving Osimhen one goal short of becoming the club's all-time most prolific foreign scorer in Europe.

Coming into the game with six goals in five Champions League matches, the belief that the Nigerian striker would "design the Etihad with goals" was almost universal among the travelling fans and the Naija community.

“Victor will turn up. I trust him,” one supporter had posted before kick-off, and for the first 15 minutes, it looked like he might.

Osimhen was a constant physical presence, testing City’s youthful backline and forcing an early save from Gianluigi Donnarumma.

However, City’s midfield dominance eventually starved the striker of the proper feeding he has enjoyed in the Super Lig.

While the result was a disappointment for the Lions, the consensus remains that Osimhen is the reason Galatasaray even had a fighting chance at the Etihad.

Erling Haaland's early strike and a second-half goal from Rayan Cherki proved too much to overcome.

Osimhen remains tied with Milan Baros and Shabani Nonda at 12 European goals for Galatasaray. 

While he was unable to move clear tonight, the Nigerian King of Istanbul still has the knockout playoffs to claim the throne for himself.