Osimhen and Kvaratskhelia Carrying Napoli to New Heights

Football - Serie A - Torino v Napoli - Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino, Turin, Italy - March 19, 2023 Napoli's Victor Osimhen applauds fans after being substituted. (Reuters)
Football - Serie A - Torino v Napoli - Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino, Turin, Italy - March 19, 2023 Napoli's Victor Osimhen applauds fans after being substituted. (Reuters)
TT
20

Osimhen and Kvaratskhelia Carrying Napoli to New Heights

Football - Serie A - Torino v Napoli - Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino, Turin, Italy - March 19, 2023 Napoli's Victor Osimhen applauds fans after being substituted. (Reuters)
Football - Serie A - Torino v Napoli - Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino, Turin, Italy - March 19, 2023 Napoli's Victor Osimhen applauds fans after being substituted. (Reuters)

Victor Osimhen combines the characteristics of a classic No. 9 with the talents of a modern striker.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s dribbling wizardry and passing abilities befuddle defenders in Italy and beyond.

Individually, Osimhen and Kvaratskhelia are devastating enough. Together, they are leading Napoli to new heights game after game.

The latest demonstration came when Osimhen scored a brace of headers and Kvaratskhelia earned and converted a penalty and set up two goals in Napoli’s 4-0 win at Torino in Serie A on Sunday.

The victory moved the runaway leader a staggering 21 points ahead of second-place Inter Milan and a step closer to Napoli’s first Serie A title since Diego Maradona led the club to its only two Italian league championships back in 1987 and 1990.

Osimhen started it off midway through the first half when he leaped above the defense to redirect in a corner with a towering header.

After a couple of key saves from Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret — who is also quietly having a standout season — Kvaratskhelia doubled the advantage with a penalty.

But that was just the warmup.

The main act was Napoli’s third goal, a full team move with Kvaratskhelia providing a backheel flick to Mathias Olivera, who floated in a cross for Osimhen to head in at the far post.

Osimhen became the first player to score two headed braces in the same Serie A season since former Italy striker Alberto Gilardino accomplished the feat in 2009-10 with Fiorentina.

Osimhen has a league-best 21 goals in 27 matches, while Kvaratskhelia has 12 goals and 10 assists — the first player with such production in their first season in Europe’s big five leagues since Diego scored 13 and provided 13 assists for Werder Bremen 16 years ago.

Kvaratskhelia also set up Tanguy Ndombole’s first Serie A goal midway through the second half.

Osimhen also scored twice when Napoli beat Eintracht Frankfurt 3-0 on Wednesday to secure a 5-0 aggregate victory and reach the Champions League quarterfinals.

Also Sunday, Fiorentina moved into the top half of the table by beating Lecce 1-0 with an own-goal from Antonino Gallo and Sampdoria defeated Hellas Verona 3-1 with a brace from Manolo Gabbiadini in a matchup of two teams in the drop zone.

Meanwhile, fans clashed with police outside the Stadio Olimpico before the Rome derby between Roma and Lazio.



'World's Oldest Marathon Runner' Dies Aged 114 in Road Accident

 (FILES) Indian-born British national Fauja Singh (C) waves a Hong Kong flag after crossing the finish line in the 10-km event as part of the Hong Kong Marathon on February 24, 2013. (Photo by Dale DE LA REY / AFP)
(FILES) Indian-born British national Fauja Singh (C) waves a Hong Kong flag after crossing the finish line in the 10-km event as part of the Hong Kong Marathon on February 24, 2013. (Photo by Dale DE LA REY / AFP)
TT
20

'World's Oldest Marathon Runner' Dies Aged 114 in Road Accident

 (FILES) Indian-born British national Fauja Singh (C) waves a Hong Kong flag after crossing the finish line in the 10-km event as part of the Hong Kong Marathon on February 24, 2013. (Photo by Dale DE LA REY / AFP)
(FILES) Indian-born British national Fauja Singh (C) waves a Hong Kong flag after crossing the finish line in the 10-km event as part of the Hong Kong Marathon on February 24, 2013. (Photo by Dale DE LA REY / AFP)

India's Fauja Singh, believed to be the world's oldest distance runner, has died in a road accident aged 114, his biographer said Tuesday.

Singh, an Indian-born British national, nicknamed the "Turbaned Tornado", died after being hit by a vehicle in Punjab state's Jalandhar district on Monday, AFP reported.

"My Turbaned Tornado is no more," Fauja's biographer Khushwant Singh wrote on X.

"He was struck by an unidentified vehicle... in his village, Bias, while crossing the road. Rest in peace, my dear Fauja."

Singh did not have a birth certificate but his family said he was born on April 1, 1911.

He ran full marathons (42 kilometer) till the age of 100.

His last race was a 10-kilometer (six-mile) event at the 2013 Hong Kong Marathon when 101, where he finished in one hour, 32 minutes and 28 seconds.

He became an international sensation after taking up distance running at the ripe old age of 89, after the death of his wife and one of his sons, inspired by seeing marathons on television.

Although widely regarded as the world's oldest marathon runner, he was not certified by Guinness World Records as he could not prove his age, saying that birth certificates did not exist when he was born under British colonial rule in 2011.

Singh was a torchbearer for the Olympics at Athens 2004 and London 2012, and appeared in advertisements with sports stars such as David Beckham and Muhammad Ali.

His strength and vitality were credited to a routine of farm walks and a diet including Indian sweet "laddu" packed with dry fruits and home-churned curd.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute on social media.

"Fauja Singh was extraordinary because of his unique persona and the manner in which he inspired the youth of India on a very important topic of fitness," said Modi on X.

"He was an exceptional athlete with incredible determination. Pained by his passing away. My thoughts are with his family and countless admirers around the world."