Osimhen Explains Muted Celebration After Galatasaray’s Dramatic Win Over Juventus

Victor Osimhen has explained why he chose not to celebrate after scoring a vital goal for Galatasaray in their dramatic Champions League clash against Juventus on Wednesday night.

Juventus claimed a 3-2 win after extra time at the Allianz Stadium, but Galatasaray progressed to the Round of 16 with a 7-5 aggregate victory.

The Turkish side travelled to Italy with a strong 5-2 advantage from the first leg in Istanbul. However, Juventus responded impressively in Turin.

Despite being reduced to ten men, the Italian club stormed into a 3-0 lead on the night, forcing the match into extra time and threatening a remarkable comeback.

Only minutes into extra time, Osimhen scored the decisive goal to restore Galatasaray’s aggregate lead and seal qualification. Instead of celebrating wildly, the Nigerian forward calmly exchanged handshakes with teammates.

After the match, Osimhen explained that his reaction was out of respect for Juventus manager Luciano Spalletti, whom he worked with at SSC Napoli.

“No, I don’t need to, I don’t need to,” Osimhen said. “I think it’s important to respect a man I love and who has played an important role in my career — I’m obviously talking about Spalletti. I didn’t feel the need to celebrate.”

While happy that Galatasaray reached the knockout stage for the first time in 12 years, Osimhen admitted he was not pleased with his team’s performance.

“We played very poorly, even when they were a man down, so there was no reason to celebrate,” he added.

“Even when we had the opportunity to score the decisive goal, the one to make it 3-1, I didn’t feel the need to celebrate. I’m not that kind of player, someone who tries to hide his emotions, or who does things like that. I saw all these people applauding the Juventus players for their performance, and I can say I’m happy…”

Galatasaray will now wait for the draw to find out whether they will face Liverpool FC or Tottenham Hotspur FC in the Round of 16.