Victor Osimhen returned among the goals last weekend with a towering header as Napoli came from behind to defeat Monza 4-2, earning praise from Didier Drogba.

Elsewhere, Mohamed Salah once again scored against Manchester United, albeit Liverpool dropped points in their English Premier League title quest; Nathan Tella appears to be on the brink of Bundesliga glory with Bayer Leverkusen; and Iñaki Williams got his hands on silverware after Athletic Club enjoyed Copa del Rey glory.

March was a testing month for Osimhen, as he failed to net in four matches for Napoli after returning to form in February -- when he scored five goals in three games, including a hat-trick against Sassuolo.

In truth, 2024 isn't proving to be a vintage year for the Nigerian: He scored just once as Nigeria reached the Africa Cup of Nations final, and has failed to net in 12 of 16 matches for club and country; it's a far cry from the consistency and ferocity of his scoring last season, when he inspired Napoli to a third Serie A title.

Osimhen continues to be linked with some of Europe's genuine heavyweights, but his goal return is half that of Lautaro Martínez, who is leading the Serie A scoring charts, and Napoli are well off the pace in their title defence.

With his days at Napoli perhaps coming to an end, Osimhen returned to form in some style against Monza, equalising early in the second half after Milan Djuric had given the hosts the lead.

With 54 minutes on the clock, Cameroon's André-Frank Zambo Anguissa sent in a delightful, looping right-footed cross, having spotted Osimhen primed 12 yards out after forging space between three defenders.

Osimhen's leap was perfect: He waited, waited, waited, and just when he seemed to have left it too long, leaped over the shoulders of his opponents, meeting the ball more than two metres in the air before sending it emphatically into the corner of the net. Osimhen -- who's had his fair share of injury problems -- ended in a crumpled heap on the turf, once again writhing in discomfort, but this was yet another magnificent demonstration of his athleticism and capacity for in-the-moment innovation.

In February 2023, Osimhen jumped 2.58m in the air to score against Spezia, "leap-frogging" Cristiano Ronaldo to register the second-highest leap recorded in Serie A -- behind only Fikayo Tomori.

Osimhen has pedigree as far as astonishing leaps are concerned, but there was certainly something breathtaking about his 2.32m effort against Monza; the pause as he did the geometry, the bravery to take the defender on, and the power of the header. Yet again, Osimhen demonstrated a remarkable ability to generate immense height from almost a standing start, while giving himself the hang time to orient his body and direct his header beyond goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio.

"You swallow aeroplane?" X user @IamDikeh posited, while the official Serie A handle suggested the goal was "peak Super Eagle energy."

In the short-term, the goal inspired Napoli's turnaround against Monza, sending them on their way to a victory and keeping them in the race for European qualification. In the longer term, certainly if rumours of a summer move to Chelsea are anything to go by, the goal may be one of Osimhen's last truly great contributions to the Parteopei's cause.

Certainly, it left one of his potential predecessors at Stamford Bridge -- Drogba -- in awe of the Super Eagles strikers' courage.

"I saw Victor score that goal against Monza," Drogba told FOX Sports. "Oh God, he's got hurt, I thought. I wouldn't have gone for that ball, it was crazy, an absurd goal."

In Spain, Williams won the first major trophy of his career as Athletic Bilbao dispatched Mallorca in the Copa del Rey final, prompting tearful celebrations from the 29-year-old and his brother Nico.

The Ghana star and his sibling, who plays for Spain, started as the sides drew 1-1 before the Basque heavyweights won 4-2 on penalties.

Williams, 29, is a rare contemporary example of a one-club player, and he has been lauded for his longevity and consistency with Athletic, having set a league record for consecutive appearances for his boyhood club. Silverware hadn't been forthcoming, however, with the 2021 Spanish Super Cup victory his only reward for a decade of service.

"Dream unlocked," Williams wrote on Instagram, while Ghana team-mates André Ayew, Mohammed Kudus and Antoine Semenyo were among those who took to social media to congratulate him.

Tella is another African star closing on major honours, the Nigerian on the cusp of Bundesliga glory with undefeated Bayer Leverkusen.

The wideman -- starting as wing-back -- made yet another key contribution as Xabi Alonso's side eked out a 1-0 victory against Union Berlin that took them a major step closer to their first league title.

Tella proved the difference-maker after a cagey first half, winning a free kick after a searing dribble -- sent sprawling on the edge of the box as hapless Robin Gosens picked up a second yellow card.

The set piece led to a handball, which led to a penalty, and the visitors duly took the lead through Florian Wirtz. Bayern Munich slumped to their second consecutive defeat, and Bayer are now 16 points clear atop the standings with six matches to play.

Tella, who started the campaign at Southampton, created three goalscoring chances during the course of the contest, and also had one attempt saved by impressive goalkeeper Frederik Ronnow.

Tella and Victor Boniface can become German champions this weekend if Bayer defeat Werder Bremen at home on Sunday, although the title will be won on Saturday if both Bayern and VfB Stuttgart lose.

Finally to the Premier League, where Salah made his mark on another contest between Liverpool and Manchester United.

The Egypt superstar salvaged a point for Liverpool in a back-and-forth fixture in which Luis Díaz put the Reds ahead before Bruno Fernandes and Kobbie Mainoo put United on their way to all three points.

Salah put an 84th-minute penalty beyond André Onana after Aaron Wan-Bissaka had fouled Harvey Elliott, the goal setting a Premier League record against the hosts.

The goal was Salah's 11th against United in the top flight; breaking the record of 10 that he had shared with Alan Shearer.

In truth, however, the landmark goal only partially deflected attention from what was yet another profligate display by Salah as he continues to work his way back to full fitness.

He missed a hatful of chances before scoring the winner against Brighton & Hove Albion the previous weekend, and it was a similar story here; Salah had six attempts on goal -- no one had more -- but forced a save from Onana only three times.

Salah at full sharpness surely wouldn't have fluffed his lines when played through during the Merseysiders' first-half dominance, nor spooned an attempt over the bar as Liverpool sought an equaliser.

Salah's injury-enforced absence after the Africa Cup of Nations, and his subsequent stuttering form, may yet prove crucial as Liverpool seek their 20th league crown.

Source:
courtesy of ESPN

by Ed Dove, Special to ESPN

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