Galatasaray were the highest-scoring team in the Süper Lig through their opening four matches this season, 12 goals, and Victor Osimhen was directly involved in eight of them: six goals and two assists. He opened the scoring against Istanbul Basaksehir on 4 September with his sixth goal of the campaign, a rare long-range finish, only his second league goal from outside the box in seven seasons. He was substituted around the half-hour mark with what looked like a muscle injury, in a match Galatasaray went on to win 3-2.

Scans at Acibadem Hospital confirmed an advanced-moderate strain in his right adductor, with bleeding in the muscle. He was reported to be facing a recovery of two to three weeks, a window that has so far covered the Champions League opener against Sporting Lisbon and the Süper Lig fixture against Kocaelispor.

Galatasaray lost the first of those matches 3-1. They won the second 1-0, the goal coming from Abdulkerim Bardakci, a centre-back, with 19 minutes to go. Deniz Gul and Baris Alper Yilmaz led the line in Osimhen's absence. Neither scored.

Okan Buruk didn't wait to be asked about the gap. "Having Osimhen is a strength, not just in terms of the player, but also psychologically, just being on the field," he said after the Kocaelispor win. "With Osimhen, the game is very important, both in terms of pressing in attack and having a goalscorer like him in the penalty area." He also said Osimhen could easily have scored two or three goals from the chances his side created, while insisting Galatasaray remain a strong side either way.

Galatasaray had 10 points from their opening four league matches, three wins and a draw, but that was only good enough for second place. Beating Kocaelispor put them back on top of the table: 13 points from five matches, and still the league's leading scorers.

That record was built almost entirely while Osimhen was fit and scoring in every fixture he played. The two matches since he left the pitch are the only evidence available on what the team looks like without him, and neither one is reassuring: a European defeat, and a 1-0 win that needed a defender to settle it.

Osimhen is hoping to be fit for the trip to Trabzonspor, Galatasaray's next match, with Buruk saying he'd field a stronger squad if his striker and midfielder Mario Lemina are both available. He remains doubtful for Nigeria's opening 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau later in September.

Two matches aren't enough to prove Galatasaray's title challenge depends on one body. But they're the first real evidence of what depending on him might cost.