Victor Osimhen admits he wants to “escape” Liverpool in the Champions League last 16 draw despite Galatasaray’s thriller vs Juventus.
In a week of high-stakes European drama, Galatasaray’s star striker Victor Osimhen has expressed a mix of respect and tactical wariness regarding a potential Round of 16 clash with Liverpool.
Following a chaotic victory over Juventus in UEFA Champions League play-offs, the Nigerian international admitted that while he trusts his team’s grit, he would prefer to avoid a “revenge” mission against the Premier League giants.
Galatasaray’s journey to the final sixteen was anything but smooth. After securing a commanding 5-2 lead in the first leg in Istanbul, the Turkish champions saw their aggregate advantage completely wiped out at the Allianz Stadium on Wednesday night.
Despite Juventus being reduced to ten men early in the second half following Lloyd Kelly’s straight red card, the Italians scored three unanswered goals to level the tie at 5-5. The match was pushed into a frantic extra-time period, where Osimhen finally broke the deadlock before Barış Alper Yılmaz added a second to seal a 7-5 aggregate triumph.
Osimhen’s honest admission
Following the match, Osimhen spoke to CBS Sports Golazo about the upcoming draw, where Galatasaray will face either Liverpool or Tottenham. Despite having already beaten the Reds 1-0 in the league phase last September, the 27-year-old is cautious about a rematch.
Because Liverpool finished third in the league phase, they are a seeded team and have a very specific path laid out for the knockout stages.
“I mean to be honest with you, meeting Liverpool now is going to be like some sort of revenge,” Osimhen admitted. “I wouldn’t say much but I would like to escape Liverpool. But if they come, yeah, we’re going to dig it out but it’s not going to be easy.”
Osimhen noted that the intimidating atmosphere of Anfield is a significant factor in his desire to avoid the draw.
“We’ve met Liverpool but we haven’t played at Anfield. If we meet them it’s going to be an amazing game. I think we’re up to the task, it’s not going to be easy, of course, but we have fight in us.”
The “revenge” narrative
Liverpool’s record against Galatasaray is surprisingly poor, with only one win in their five historical meetings. Their most recent encounter in September saw Osimhen score a clinical albeit controversial penalty to secure a 1-0 win for Okan Buruk’s side at RAMS Park.
With Liverpool finishing in the top eight of the league phase, they hold the advantage of hosting the second leg at home on March 2017/18. This “Anfield factor” is exactly what Osimhen hopes to avoid:
“If you want to win you also have to play the big dogs and make a statement for yourself,” he added, acknowledging the caliber of competition. “I mean this is Champions League, no team is easy… we can see how flying Bodo/Glimt are really doing in this tournament.”
The fixture would hold extra weight given Osimhen’s history of being linked with a move to Merseyside. However, Liverpool head coach Arne Slot recently downplayed those rumours, revealing that the club’s recruitment strategy was focused elsewhere following the tragic death of Diogo Jota.
“How should I say this in the right way in English… Because of an enormous tragedy that happened with Diogo Jota in the end we had to bring in two number nines,” Slot explained.
“We always thought we were going to replace Darwin Nunez but in the end we had to bring in two number nines. We are always looking for very good players but it was always clear to us from the start that we wanted to bring in these two [Ekitike and Isak] if we needed to.”
Following the conclusion of the play-offs on Wednesday night, the bracket is now set. Because of their high seeding, Liverpool’s potential round-of-16 opponents have been narrowed down to just two teams.
Liverpool will be drawn against the winner of one specific play-off path. They will face either:
- Galatasaray (who eliminated Juventus)
- Atlético Madrid (who eliminated Club Brugge)
As a seeded team, Liverpool will play the first leg away (March 10/11) and host the crucial second leg at Anfield (March 17/18)
The road beyond the last-16
Friday’s ceremony isn’t just for the round-of-16 it will also map out the quarter-finals and semi-finals.
If Liverpool advance past Galatasaray or Atlético, they already know which side of the bracket they fall on. Their potential quarter-final opponents will be the winners from these ties:
- Chelsea or Barcelona
- Newcastle United or Paris Saint-Germain
The draw details
Location: House of European Football, Nyon, Switzerland
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026
Time: 11:00 AM GMT (12:00 PM CET)
