Napoli are the team to watch out for this season in Europe, having wiped the floor with everyone they have faced in their group, including Liverpool.
Things aren’t too bad at home as well, with Monday night’s visit to José Mourinho’s Roma ending in a 1-0 victory for the Neapolitans.
Luciano Spaletti’s men sit atop the Serie A after 11 games, and Stadio Diego Armando Maradona appears to be enjoying every minute of the thrilling football that is on offer.
It seems stereotypes of Italian sides adopting a Catenaccio style are being torn apart by Napoli this season, with the likes of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Victor Osimhen causing teams to worry about their own defensive shape.
Life is good if it revolves around supporting Napoli.
But it’s probably not as good as this particular fan – the stirring tale of whom was recounted by Nigerian journalist Oma Akatugba, in which the fan got to meet his idol Victor Osimhen.
After the game against AS Roma finished, Akatugba met one Matteo Lo Cicero, who was deployed as a steward close to one of the players’ lounges which only their circle of friends, family, and agents can access.
Being a steward, this fan in question asked Akatugba who he was waiting for, and the journalist told him that it was for Osimhen, the match-winner that night at the Stadio Olimpico.
It was at this moment that the steward let Akatugba know that he was a huge fan of Osimhen, and requested a meeting with the Napoli star striker.
Akatugba is a known friend of Victor Osimhen, and both hail from Nigeria, where European football is followed fanatically.
Akatugba obliged the young fan’s request and had him meet his idol, but that was only the beginning of this story.
Overjoyed upon meeting Osimhen, the fan revealed that he even had the Nigerian’s image on his 18th birthday cake, and just how big a fan he was of the 23-year-old.
However, upon being seen by his manager with the player, he was asked to give his bib back and was told that he wouldn’t keep his job for leaving his post and interacting with players.
A Roma employee saw what was happening and fired the steward for approaching a player.
Osimhen tried to defend him to the employee. He told the steward to give his journalist friend his number and that Osimhen would handle it personally ♥️
That was when Osimhen intervened and asked the manager to cut his young fan some slack and coming to his defense, even offered to help him find another job if he was fired.
“He called him and she should not take relieve him of his duties. Because of language issues, we couldn’t really sort it out and Victor asked the boy how much they pay him, he mentioned it and Victor told him someone would reach soon. The lad said meeting Victor was enough for him” wrote Akatugba in a tweet that was a part of a long thread describing the whole incident.
So while waiting for Victor After the match at this location where only friends, family and close confidants and agents are allowed to access, I saw this lad who worked as one of the stewards. He asked who I was waiting for, I said Victor Osimhen. He said oh, he is my idol,
The meeting of Matteo Lo Cicero and Victor Osimhen has become quite a story and is being reported far and wide for being an example illustrating the fact that there are footballers who still make time for fans despite the constant media attention into their personal lives.
Whether Victor Osimhen keeps his word or not in the face of his busy schedule, the young fan’s gratefulness towards both Oma Akatugba and the player sure was touching and so was the gesture of the Nigerian duo.
