Super Eagles and Napoli forward Victor Osimhen has revealed why he wears a face mask during matches.
The 26-year-old, who was loaned to Süper Lig club Galatasaray in the recently concluded 2024/2025 season, is known for wearing a mask during international and club matches.
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The former Lille striker, currently holidaying in Nigeria, spoke during an interview with broadcaster and radio host Ifedayo ‘Daddy Freeze’ Olarinde, which was posted on Facebook on Thursday.
He revealed that the incident which led to him wearing the mask occurred in 2021 during a Serie A match between Napoli and Inter Milan.
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Osimhen, who began his senior career in Germany with VfL Wolfsburg in 2017, described the injury as a near-death experience.
He recalled how it happened: “In 2021, we’re having a game against Inter Milan in San Siro Stadium. My teammate crossed the ball for me, so I wanted to head the ball. And the guy was bringing his head, and then his head hit my face, and all the bones got broken. So actually, it was all funny, but you know, this type of joke is that if I slap you, you’ll see a star. I was sitting blankly.
“If you watch the replay, I raised my hand until their goalkeeper touched me. That was when I knew I was alive. It was a near-death experience. So I stood up, after about 10 minutes on the floor, and went directly to the hospital. I even asked our team doctor when I would play again. I never knew the injury was that bad. And then the doctors came, they did an X-ray, just an X-ray, not even an MRI.”
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Surgery
Additionally, the Lagos-born player stated that wearing a face mask was recommended after his surgery.
He noted that he would continue to wear the mask whenever he is on the pitch.
“They did an X-ray, and the doctor came and said, from what he saw in the X-ray, I have to do surgery as quickly as possible. I said I’m not doing surgery, that they can’t cut my face. He said, No, they will go through my jaw. I can’t eat here for the rest of my life. So they went through my jaw, brought out the fragments, took everything out, then saw everything. So here is an iron, one here, and the other one is here. I have iron in my face.
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“There are some injuries that you just take out and play normally when they’re done. But mine is, I don’t think there are worse injuries in football, but mine also is, I could lose my eyes. It was so bad, and that’s the reason why I put on the mask. So, I can jump, go head to head. If anyone hits me, they get injured because it’s like a, it’s powerful,” said Osimhen.
Furthermore, the player spoke about his humble beginnings, revealing that he once did menial jobs to survive during childhood.
According to him, he fetched water for neighbours and cleaned algae-filled gutters, earning as little as N80 and N30 for each task, respectively.
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