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• Napoli striker misplaces facemask
By Johnny Edward.
Napoli President Aurelio De Laurentiis has confirmed Victor Osimhen will be out for a couple of weeks and could miss two of the three Milan games, while Kvicha Kvaratskhelia ‘doesn’t need’ a new contract.
Osimhen returned from playing for Nigeria with a muscular injury to the adductor in his left thigh.
Officially, he will be re-evaluated next week, therefore missing Sunday’s Serie A showdown with Milan, but De Laurentiis gave an update during his interview with reporters at the Lega Serie A meeting.
“He should be out for a couple of weeks, we hope,” De Laurentiis said.
Napoli face Milan again in the Champions League quarter-final, with the first leg at San Siro on April 12 and the decider on April 18, so Osimhen is a major doubt to feature in at least the first leg and potentially the second too.
Meanwhile, Osimhen’ returned from international duty without his facemask.
According to reports, the striker lost the mask while returning to Italy after Nigeria’s 1-0 win over Guinea-Bissau.
However, former Napoli captain Marek Hamsik is overjoyed with the work of Luciano Spalletti’s squad this season and called on their stars to stay put in the Campania capital.
The Partenopei emerged as one of the best and most exciting teams in Europe this campaign, flying to the top of the Serie A table with ease. The team have looked equally impressive in the Champions League and will face Milan in the quarter-finals.
Napoli are only weeks away from winning their first Scudetto since the days of Diego Maradona and have a concrete chance of securing glory on the European stage, setting up a thrilling end to the season.
Speaking to Napolimagazine, Hamsik first discussed his happiness at Napoli’s success this season.
“I am happy for the people of Naples, the club, the president, the coach, the boys, it is a satisfaction that they all deserve. For me Napoli can go very far, but they must not concede anything to their opponents.”
He spoke highly of fellow midfielder Stanislav Lobotka.
The former Partenopei captain also praised a number of other Napoli stars, asking them to stay with the club.
“Zielinski is also very important for the attacking manoeuvres. Kvaratskhelia has great imagination, he’s a beautiful sight. Osimhen has matured a lot and every goal he scores is never trivial. I hope they can all stay at Napoli because they are young and can start a cycle.”