There might not be a public admission but Gennaro Gattuso probably had an eye on Nigeria’s two Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Benin and Lesotho, owing to star striker Victor Osimhen being in action for the Super Eagles.
Having had little game time with Napoli before the international break, the young forward thrived for the West African giants and ended joint top scorer in qualifying with five goals and he set up Oghenekaro Etebo vs Lesotho to take his assists tally to five.
However, it wasn’t without initial resistance and difficulty. Osimhen saw an early second-half effort come back off the post, a late header saved by Saturnin Allagbe and a close-range effort blocked on the line with almost the last kick of the game.