Victor Osimhen continued his bright pre-season form by finding the net for Galatasaray, though it was not enough to prevent a 2-1 defeat to Villarreal in the Turkish club's final warm-up fixture on Saturday.
Osimhen on Target Again but Galatasaray Fall to Villarreal in Pre-Season Finale
Victor Osimhen continued his bright pre-season form by finding the net for Galatasaray, though it was not enough to prevent a 2-1 defeat to Villarreal in the Turkish club's final warm-up fixture on Saturday.
Villarreal made an instant impression, winning a penalty inside three minutes that Ayoze Perez converted to put the Spanish side ahead. Osimhen responded almost immediately, equalising for Galatasaray just two minutes later to level the contest.
The turnaround proved short-lived. Georges Mikautadze restored Villarreal's lead with four minutes remaining in the first half, and the scoreline held through the final whistle to hand Galatasaray a 2-1 loss.
A mixed pre-season for the Turkish champions
Saturday's result capped a difficult pre-season run for Galatasaray, who collected just one win from five matches — suffering three defeats and one draw across the campaign. Their sole bright spot in recent outings came the previous Sunday, when Osimhen was also among the scorers in a 3-3 draw with French Ligue 1 side Rennes.
Despite the underwhelming results, Osimhen's individual contributions will offer encouragement. The Nigerian striker — who was instrumental in Galatasaray's Turkish Super Lig title triumph last season — appears sharp ahead of the competitive campaign.
Eyes on the Super Lig opener
Galatasaray now turn their attention to serious competition. The club are set to begin their Turkish Super League season next Friday when they face newly promoted Corum FK in the first round. After a pre-season that failed to fire on all cylinders, the champions will be eager to get back to winning ways on home soil.


