Victor Osimhen endured a difficult night on his return from AFCON 2025 duty as Galatasaray were held to a 1-1 draw by Atletico Madrid in their UEFA Champions League league-phase clash at Rams Park on Wednesday.
The Nigerian striker was restored to the starting lineup but struggled to make a major impact in a tense contest that saw both sides share the points. Atletico Madrid took the lead as early as the fourth minute when Giuliano Simeone powered into the box to head home a cross from Thiago Almada. The move followed a poor defensive reaction from Davinson Sánchez, who failed to deal with a cross intended for Alexander Sorloth.
Galatasaray responded in the 20th minute when they were gifted an equaliser. Roland Sallai delivered a dangerous cross from the right and Marcos Llorente, attempting to clear, turned the ball into his own net under pressure.
Osimhen’s evening summed up Galatasaray’s attacking struggles. He failed to register a single shot in either half and was shown a yellow card in the 29th minute for remonstrating after winning a free kick deep in his own half. Over the course of 90 minutes, he completed 11 of his 19 passes, had 36 touches, managed just one successful dribble, won three of six ground duels, dominated in the air by winning four of five aerial contests, and also contributed defensively with four recoveries and four clearances.
The second half was combative and short of clear chances until the closing moments. In the 88th minute, Galatasaray goalkeeper Ugurcan Cakir kept his side level with two outstanding saves, first denying Antoine Griezmann from a free kick and then reacting quickly to block the French forward again from close range.
Galatasaray nearly snatched victory deep into stoppage time. In the 94th minute, Victor Osimhen showed his fighting spirit to win a loose ball that seemed destined for the Atletico defence. He squared it into the box for Gabriel Sara, whose powerful effort was brilliantly saved by Jan Oblak to preserve the draw for the Spanish side.
Before kick-off, Galatasaray sat 18th in the overall table, three points behind eighth-placed Atletico, underlining the importance of the clash on matchday seven. The Turkish side were also chasing a first-ever win over Atletico, having previously drawn one and lost three of their four European meetings, including two home defeats.
The result maintained Galatasaray’s poor record against Spanish opposition, with just one win in their last 21 matches against La Liga teams. Atletico, meanwhile, continued their dominance over Turkish clubs, having lost only once in 14 such encounters and winning their previous five.
Galatasaray will complete their league-stage campaign against Manchester City on January 28, knowing that a victory could secure them a place in the playoff round of the Champions League.
