Milan: Napoli faces the prospect of going into one of its biggest-ever matches without star player Victor Osimhen.
Osimhen has missed the last two matches for Napoli after injuring the adductor muscle in his left leg while on international duty with Nigeria.
The club hoped the forward would be fit for the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals against AC Milan at the San Siro Wednesday but that is looking increasingly unlikely.
Osimhen has not trained with the team since returning to Naples last month and Italian media reports said Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis told concerned fans at the weekend that Osimhen would not be fit in time for the match.
“Victor is not in a position to play, unfortunately,” De Laurentiis was quoted as saying. “We hope to have him back for the return fixture” April 18.
Osimhen is the top scorer in the Italian league this season and his 21 goals have played a crucial role in Napoli’s seemingly unstoppable march to a first Serie A title since Diego Maradona led the club to its only two Italian league championships in 1987 and 1990. Napoli has a 16-point lead at the top of the table with the team also featuring dribbling wizard Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and influential midfielder Stanislav Lobotka.
Osimhen has netted four times in the Champions League this season, including three goals in the victory over Eintracht Frankfurt in the round of 16.
That saw Napoli reach the Champions League quarterfinals for the first time in its history.
In Osimhen’s absence, Napoli was routed 4-0 by Milan in the league but bounced back to win 2-1 at Lecce Friday.
“In soccer you sometimes go through the doldrums but you have to be able to dig deep when it matters,” Napoli coach Luciano Spalletti said after the win. “We’ve gained a lot of confidence from successfully navigating this tricky away match.”
Spalletti faces a difficult decision on whether to risk his star forward.
Napoli is a different team with Osimhen and the opposition defense knows he can cause problems at any time, but a relapse could rule the forward out for the rest of the season.
The winner of the two-legged matchup between Milan and Napoli will face Inter Milan or Benfica in the semifinals.
AP