Nigeria striker Victor Osimhen marked his return from injury with an assist as 10-man Galatasaray defeated Kasımpaşa 3-1 in Friday’s Turkish Süper Lig encounter at RAMS Park.

Osimhen came off the bench in the 77th minute after spending more than a month on the sidelines with a groin injury, making an immediate impact as the Istanbul giants secured an important victory despite playing the closing stages with 10 men. 

Galatasaray took the lead in the 45th minute through defender Abdülkerim Bardakcı, who headed home from Aleksey Batrakov’s delivery to give the hosts a 1-0 advantage at half-time. 

However, the contest changed in the 65th minute when midfielder Lucas Torreira was sent off following a VAR review that upgraded his yellow card to a red, leaving Galatasaray a player short.

Kasımpaşa capitalised three minutes later, with Jesurun Rak-Sakyi finding the net in the 68th minute to draw the visitors level at 1-1. 

Osimhen’s introduction added urgency to Galatasaray’s attack. The Nigerian forward nearly made an immediate contribution when he laid the ball off for Leroy Sané, whose effort was saved by Kasımpaşa goalkeeper Andreas Gianniotis.

Osimhen also came close to scoring himself, but Gianniotis denied him as Galatasaray searched for a late winner. 

The hosts eventually restored their lead in the 90th minute through Barış Alper Yılmaz, who finished from inside the penalty area to put Galatasaray 2-1 ahead.

Six minutes into stoppage time, Osimhen provided the decisive assist for Mario Lemina, combining with the Nigerian striker before the Gabon international finished to seal the 3-1 victory. 

The late goal capped a memorable return for Osimhen, whose contribution helped Galatasaray turn a difficult contest into three points despite their numerical disadvantage.

The victory lifted Galatasaray to 16 points after seven league matches, while Kasımpaşa remained on 10 points following their first defeat of the league campaign. 

Galatasaray will now turn their attention to their upcoming UEFA Champions League clash against Barcelona, with Osimhen’s return providing a timely boost ahead of the European fixture.