The Turkish champions avenged last season’s Europa League defeat to the Dutch side in Amsterdam, with the former African Footballer of the Year the main protagonist in the win.
With his heroics, Osimhen became only the second Nigerian ever to score a hat-trick in Champions League history, matching a feat first achieved by Everton legend Yakubu Aiyegbeni 23 years ago.
Aiyegbeni had set the benchmark on September 24th, 2002, when he scored all three goals for Maccabi Haifa in their 3-0 triumph over Olympiacos, becoming the first Nigerian and African to record a hat-trick in the competition.
Interestingly, Osimhen’s goals also saw him outrightly surpass Obafemi Martins as the highest-scoring Nigerian in European club competitions, with a total of 25 goals.
The Super Eagles striker sealed a permanent move to Turkey from Napoli at the start of the season is currently enjoying a remarkable run of form.
His milestone also saw him become the first and only Galatasaray player to score in eight consecutive European matches for the Turkish side.
His streak includes key goals in high-profile fixtures, notably scoring the only goals in the 1-0 shock win over reigning Premier League champions Liverpool in September, before following it up with a double against Bodo/Glimt.
Even after his heroics, Osimhen was pipped by Manchester City’s Phil Foden to the Champions League player of the Week prize. The English international bagged a brace as Pep Guardiola’s Citizens silenced Borussia Dortmund 4-1 at the Etihad Stadium.
Prior to his recent feat, Osimhen had talked about his aspirations with the reigning Turkish kings in this season’s competition.
“I spoke with the president when I arrived here, and we want to really make a statement in the Champions League,” the 26-year-old told UEFA.com.
“We want to show that, in Turkey, we are the team that the whole world will know this year because we actually did something amazing in Europe.
“We’ve dominated the league for years. We will keep on dominating it, but now it’s time to make a statement in the most prestigious games, Champions League games, because it’s beautiful when you play in the Champions League. So, for us, we want to make a statement.”
The former Wolfsburg and Lille man will be hoping to extend his impressive scoring streak in Europe when Galatasaray face Union Saint-Gilloise (USG) on November 25th at the Rams Park.
