Napoli's Osimhen has all the qualities of a modern striker
Height. Speed. Skill. A willingness to lend a hand in defense.
Victor Osimhen possesses all the ingredients of a modern-day striker, and the 21-year-old Nigeria international has played a big role in Napoli's perfect start to Serie A.
With five goals in his last three matches, including his late brace to secure Napoli a 2-2 draw at Leicester in the Europa League, Osimhen is showing why the Partenopei paid a club-record transfer fee of 70 million euros ($82 million) to acquire his rights from Lille last year.
"He knows how to do it all," former Napoli forward Careca, who teamed with Diego Maradona when the southern club won the last of its two Serie A titles in 1990, told Corriere della Sera. "He moves well, he can leave space for his teammates and come in from out wide toward the goal. He's never still and when he accelerates he leaves defenders grasping for air trying to follow him."
The 6-foot-3 (1.90-meter) Osimhen showed glimpses of his potential last season in between a series of physical problems.
He broke his shoulder while with Nigeria's national team in November, tested positive for COVID-19 in January then was the victim of cranial trauma during a game in February against Atalanta.
Still, Osimhen scored 10 goals in 24 Serie A matches last season.
Osimhen also got off to a rough start this season when he was sent off during Napoli's opener against Venezia for angrily pushing away a defender.
But at Sampdoria on Thursday, he produced two goals and nearly scored twice more in a 4-0 win.
"He works so hard in everything he does," new Napoli coach Luciano Spalletti said. "Sampdoria pounced on us from the start, but that left huge gaps behind their defense, and in those situations Osimhen is devastating. When the game isn't going well, you have to try to get something on an individual level and that's what we did."
In April, Osimhen also showed off his humane side when he made an appeal on social media to put him in touch with a one-legged woman photographed selling water on the streets of his home city, Lagos.
"It hurts me to see you like this," Osimhen said when he spoke to the woman a day later. "I'm here to help you."
On Sunday, Osimhen will be expected to help Napoli by scoring more goals against a winless Cagliari side.
Camavinga quick to make a good impression with Real Madrid
Six minutes after making his debut with Real Madrid, young midfielder Eduardo Camavinga was already celebrating his first goal with the Spanish club.
It had taken even less than that for him to awe the Madrid fans at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium with a neat move with the ball around a defender.
It hasn't taken long for the 18year-old Camavinga to make a good impression with Madrid.
Little by little he is making his case to become a regular starter in Carlo Ancelotti's team, which on Saturday hosts Villarreal to defend its Spanish league lead.
Camavinga was Madrid's only signing at the transfer window's deadline last month, arriving amid the disappointment of the club's failed attempt to bring in his France teammate Kylian Mbappé from Paris Saint-Germain. Camavinga joined from Rennes on a six-year contract.
The dynamic youngster came off the bench in the 66th minute of the team's 5-2 win over Celta Vigo in the Spanish league on Sept. 12, finding the net a few moments later and impressing with his aggressive play in the midfield.
He also came off the bench in Madrid's next match, setting up Rodrygo's 89th-minute winner at Inter Milan in the Champions League with a nice pass inside the area.
Camavinga played off the bench again in the team's 2-1 win over Valencia in the Spanish league, and was a starter in the 6-1 rout against Mallorca on Wednesday.
The club's goal has been to gradually add him to the squad but he has shown he doesn't need a lot of time to adjust. Camavinga's versatility has given him an edge in a midfield filled with veterans like Toni Kroos, Luka Modric and Casemiro. His main competitor early on appears to be Fede Valverde, another young player at age 23.
Madrid will take on a Villarreal team that is coming off its first win of the season after six consecutive draws in all competitions. Unai Emery's team defeated Elche 4-1 on Wednesday to end its winless streak.
Madrid holds a two-point lead over defending champion Atlético Madrid, which visits lastplace Alavés earlier Saturday. Alavés is one of the two teams yet to earn points this season, along with Getafe.
Seventh-place Barcelona, still in crisis after three consecutive matches without a win in all competitions, hosts winless Levante on Sunday. Coach Ronaldo Koeman is under added pressure and remains at odds with club president Joan Laporta.
Fifth-place Valencia, coming off two straight losses, hosts Athletic Bilbao, while fourth-place Sevilla tries to follow its win over Valencia in a home game against Espanyol.
Third-place Real Sociedad hosts Elche, while sixth-place Rayo Vallecano, off to a good start back in the first division, hosts Cádiz.
Second-to-last-place Getafe visits eighth-place Real Betis, while on Monday Celta Vigo hosts winless Granada in a match between clubs near the bottom of the standings.