Football
Ed Dove, Special to ESPN 3y

Victor Osimhen hits first Serie A double, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane combine again for Liverpool

Victor Osimhen continued his strong end to the Serie A season with a first Napoli brace as the UEFA Champions League hopefuls defeated Spezia 4-1, while Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane finally ended an unwanted wait in the Premier League.

Italian Serie A

Victor Osimhen hasn't been an overwhelming success in his maiden season in Italian football, but the evidence of the past few weeks suggests he may prove an astute long-term investment for Napoli.

The Nigeria striker was in sensational form this weekend as Napoli put Spezia to the sword, scoring twice in what was perhaps his best Serie A performance to date.

Osimhen scored his first goal in the 23rd minute, after excellent work from Piotr Zielinski, and added his second -- and Napoli's third -- a minute before half-time after superb interplay with Lorenzo Insigne, with whom the West African now has a valuable understanding.

Osimhen, who added a second-half assist, now has 10 goals this season having extended his run of seven in eight games since returning to Europe after the international break.

Osimhen deserves to be considered among the most exciting young striking talents in the European game, despite his travails this term.

He's among the five youngest players to have hit double figures in each of the past two league seasons -- alongside the likes of Marcus Rashford and Kylian Mbappe -- and only Erling Haaland is younger than the Nigerian.

"Victor is happy with this victory and he is feeling well at Napoli," the player's agent, William D'Avila, told Radio Kiss Kiss.

"When he scores goals, everything becomes easier.

"He's proud to wear the Napoli shirt, and wants to thank the club for supporting and waiting for him when he got injured and when he caught COVID.

"We never listened to criticism; it's normal that there are many expectations when the transfer fee is high."

Napoli and Osimhen are fourth on the Serie A ladder, one point ahead of Juventus with three games to play, and they may yet end the campaign with Champions League qualification.

- Marcotti: Juventus slip from Champions League spots in Italy
- Connelly: Inter's Serie A title, and why Juventus fell short

Achraf Hakimi, meanwhile, made another contribution to Internazionale's title-winning campaign with a star turn in their 5-1 rout of Sampdoria.

Hakimi has enjoyed a magnificent season after signing for Inter, and he was influential as they got over the line in the Serie A title race.

He registered decisive assists in 1-0 victories over Cagliari and Hellas Verona, and found the net on May 1 as Inter defeated Crotone to finally secure the title.

Antonio Conte's side lost some of their dynamism during the run-in -- with the team relying on their widemen to break teams down -- but they were irrepressible against Sampdoria.

Hakimi contributed the assist for Alexis Sanchez's 36th-minute effort, registering his 14th goal contribution of the campaign.

Next up, Inter can end a fine season in style and heap further woe on fierce rivals Juventus in the weekend's Derby d'Italia.

Victory for Hakimi and co. will not only confirm Inter's standing as Italy's top dogs but also dent Juve's Champions League hopes and heap further woe on under-pressure head coach Andrea Pirlo.

English Premier League

Liverpool undoubtedly have endured a tricky season, but things are looking up both for the reigning Premier League champions -- with their Champions League-chasing rivals dropping points at the weekend -- and for Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane.

The duo were influential as Liverpool dispatched Southampton 2-0 at home on Saturday, with Mane heading home at the back post after meeting Salah's fine cross in the 31st minute.

As well as ending the Reds' three-game winless streak and sending Liverpool on their way to all three points -- taking them to sixth in the table -- the effort also represented the first time the duo have combined for a goal all season.

It was the 15th time the pair have combined for a goal in the Premier League, but the fact they hadn't previously done so in 2020-21 hints at some of the problems Jurgen Klopp's side have had going forward.

Perhaps partly motivated by playing against the club who gave him his first break in English football, Mane appeared particularly inspired to do well and his goal was his second in his past three league outings.

- Ogden: Brendan Rodgers must escape past failures
- Greenwood eclipses Ronaldo, Rooney in United history books

"This is the worst season of my career, I have to admit," Mane told Canal+ after the Saints game. "If you ask me what's wrong, I'd struggle to give you an answer. Personally I don't know. I have always tried to be positive, whether things are going well or badly. I question myself all the time."

He recent goals, after scoring only once in his previous 14 matches, suggest he may be set for a strong end to the season although a wild early effort, after being played in by Trent Alexander-Arnold, indicates that he's still not at his best.

"I even underwent a test to take a look at my body," Mane said.

"Am I eating the right foods, or has everything changed? But they checked the test results, and everything is fine. I need to understand that in life there are ups and downs so I'll keep on working hard and perhaps in time this situation will pass."

Meanwhile, Hakim Ziyech and Edouard Mendy can be quietly optimistic heading into the UEFA Champions League final if the Manchester City-Chelsea showdown in the Premier League on Saturday was a sign of what's to come in the biggest fixture of the European football calendar later this month.

The duo were influential as Thomas Tuchel's side kept City's title celebrations on ice, with the Morocco playmaker netting his first Premier League goal since October and extending his encouraging recent run of form.

In a season beset by fitness setbacks, Ziyech is at least proving what he can produce for the Blues' new regime, and he followed up his recent FA Cup semifinal winner against City with a 63rd-minute equaliser at the Etihad Stadium.

His goal was only one element of a glittering showing that was reminiscent of Ziyech in his Ajax pomp.

His four completed dribbles was a game high, while his pressing and tackling disrupted City and gave Chelsea confident to impose themselves.

"My goal was a good moment for me," Ziyech told Chelsea's official website. "I took it with both hands, and it was good that it goes in.

"For me it was more like a draw, but in the end we still had one attack and we claimed the win.

"It gives [us] confidence, of course, but in three weeks [in the Champions League final] it will be a totally different game, and three weeks is still long, we have some other games to play. When it comes closer we will focus fully on that game."

Much of the post-match criticism was levelled at Sergio Aguero for his panenka disaster, but credit must go to Mendy both for his quick reactions to the Argentinean striker's penalty attempt and his all-round display between the sticks.

The Senegal keeper's denial of Aguero from the penalty spot, with City leading 1-0, represented a crucial turning point in a fascinating contest.

Bertrand Traore scored his first league goal since February -- a delightful effort on the pivot -- as Aston Villa took the lead in their eventual 3-1 defeat by Manchester United, while Said Benrahma missed a costly effort as West Ham United fell 1-0 at home to Everton.

French Ligue 1

Few African players in Europe's big leagues are ending the season in as strong form as Algeria's Andy Delort.

The Montpellier man has had a direct hand in five goals in his past five Ligue 1 games, and he scored again as MHSC defeated Strasbourg on Sunday to bounce back after their recent defeat by Saint-Etienne.

Delort has scored 24% of Montpellier's goals this season, and he will next test his mettle against title-chasing Paris Saint-Germain in the Coupe de France semifinals on Wednesday.

Spanish Primera Division

Yassine Bounou was on the brink of one of the biggest victories of his career on Sunday, as Sevilla led Real Madrid 2-1 away heading into the fourth minute of second-half stoppage-time.

Unfortunately for the Morocco stopper and his teammates, Eden Hazard struck at the death -- Toni Kroos' shot deflecting off the Belgian and beyond Bono -- to salvage a point for Real.

The draw hurts both teams' title aspirations, with Sevilla remaining six points off Atletico Madrid with three games to play.

Julen Lopetegui's side must still play Valencia and Villarreal during a tricky run-in.

^ Back to Top ^