‘He’s a warrior’- Spalletti praises Osihmen’s energy but says Napoli must match his attitude

The 23-year-old-attacker is back to competitive action following a facial fracture, but he was initially ruled out for a longer period 

Napoli boss Luciano Spalletti has praised the effort Victor Osimhen put in ensuring he made a return from his facial injury ahead of time.

Osimhen suffered a left cheekbone and orbital fracture in November after colliding with Milan Skriniar in Napoli’s Serie A clash against Inter Milan.

The 23-year-old was ruled out of action for 90 days after undergoing surgery, but surprisingly, Osimhen resumed individual training with the aid of a mask after two weeks.

Although he still missed Nigeria’s Africa Cup of Nations campaign, the former Lille man made his return to competitive action in Napoli’s game against Bologna last month before playing another 26 minutes against Salernitana.

He is set for his first start this weekend when Napoli travel to Venice to take on Venezia, and ahead of the game, Spalletti has praised his star striker.

He’s a warrior, he put the pieces of his face together and went back to fighting with us as he always did, Spalletti said as per Antonio Gaito.

The former Roma manager, however, added that Osimhen’s teammates must show the same attitude if Napoli are to achieve their objective this season.

“We must show that we are at its height in willingness to fight and to fight with anyone,” he added.

The Neapolitans are currently second in the Italian top-flight, four points behind leaders Inter Milan, although the champions can go seven clear if they win their game in hand.