The Turkish Süper Lig has quickly become one of the most interesting stages for African attacking talent this season, with Mohamed Salah, Gift Orban, Victor Osimhen, Eldor Shomurodov and Paul Onuachu all contributing to a competition increasingly shaped by African forwards.
Salah provided the biggest headline of the latest weekend, scoring a hat-trick as Trabzonspor defeated Galatasaray 4–0 on September 19. The Egyptian scored in the fourth, 44th and 80th minutes, while also helping Trabzonspor establish control of the match.
Salah Has Changed The Conversation.
Salah’s arrival in Turkey was already one of the league’s biggest transfer stories, but his performances are now making the move a sporting story as well. His three goals against Galatasaray took his league tally to seven goals after six matches, according to current reporting, making him one of the most productive attackers in the competition.
The performance was particularly significant because it came against a Galatasaray side missing injured Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen. Salah effectively dominated a match that would otherwise have been framed around the meeting of two of the league’s biggest African stars.
Orban Is Keeping Pace.
Nigeria’s Gift Orban has also emerged as one of the league’s most dangerous scorers. The Amedspor forward scored a hat-trick in a 5–0 victory over Istanbul Başakşehir on September 13, taking his league tally to six goals at that stage and joining Osimhen at the top of the scoring race.
Orban’s numbers are particularly notable because Amedspor only recently reached the Turkish top flight. His goals have immediately placed him among the attacking names attracting attention across the league.
Osimhen’s Injury Has Interrupted His Numbers.
Osimhen had also started the season strongly for Galatasaray. He scored against Göztepe and had reached six league goals before the injury that forced him out of the club’s meeting with Trabzonspor and Nigeria’s opening AFCON 2027 qualifiers.
The injury means the Nigerian has temporarily lost his place at the centre of the scoring race just as other African forwards have accelerated.
Meanwhile, Uzbekistan captain Eldor Shomurodov has also been prominent, while Nigerian striker Paul Onuachu scored twice earlier in the campaign against Gençlerbirliği. Onuachu returned from injury as a substitute against Galatasaray, although his season has been quieter since that two-goal performance.
Turkey Has Become A Major African Attacking Stage.
The numbers underline a broader development in the Süper Lig. African attackers are not merely providing depth to Turkish clubs; several are occupying the central positions in the league’s scoring conversation.
For Salah, the challenge will be maintaining his extraordinary opening run. For Orban, it is proving that his early explosion can be sustained over a full season. For Osimhen, the immediate priority is recovery and a return to the scoring form that had him among the league’s leading forwards.
With several African strikers competing at the top end of the scoring charts, Turkey has become an important league to watch for the next chapter of African football’s influence in Europe.
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