Victor Osimhen made an impressive debut for Galatasaray, delivering an assist in their commanding 5-0 victory over Rizespor in the Turkish Super Lig on Saturday.
The Nigerian striker, who joined the Turkish giants on loan from Napoli, played a crucial role in the dominant performance at the Türk Telekom Stadium, though he narrowly missed scoring his debut goal.
Initially credited with Galatasaray’s second goal, the decision was later revised, awarding the assist to Osimhen for Abdulkerim Bardakci’s strike. Despite the change, his performance thrilled the home crowd as he played the full 90 minutes and contributed to several key attacking moves.
In the 15th minute, the 25-year-old nearly opened his Galatasaray account with a header from a Dries Mertens cross, which sailed just wide of the post. Osimhen was once again involved in the 42nd minute, but failed to connect cleanly with a chance inside the box. His best opportunity came in the 77th minute, when Rizespor’s goalkeeper denied him a goal after a well-timed effort.
Despite not scoring, Osimhen’s influence on the match was evident. Galatasaray, bolstered by the return of Colombian defender Davinson Sanchez—who opened the scoring after missing four matches—took control of the game early on. Gabriel Sara, Dries Mertens, and Baris Alper Yilmaz completed the rout, leaving Rizespor without an answer.
Nigerian internationals Ibrahim Olawoyin and David Akintola featured for the visitors, but were unable to impact the match, as Galatasaray secured their third win of the season.
With an assist in his debut, Osimhen has given Galatasaray fans much to be excited about as the team looks to continue their unbeaten start to the season.
