The future of one of Manchester United’s priority targets has taken a worrying twist, with reports in Turkey claiming that Victor Osimhen is set to stay at loan club Galatasaray.
The Nigerian hitman is one of the best strikers in Europe, and after things went sour at Napoli last year he was shipped out to Galatasaray on loan.
He has been a revelation in the Turkish top flight, scoring 33 goals and providing eight assists in just 37 matches to record the best figures of his already goal-laden career to date.
And if he scores just two more goals he will become the highest-scoring foreign player in a single season in Galatasaray history, taking over from Brazilian forward Mario Jardel.
Little wonder, then, that the Turkish giants are desperate to keep hold of their talisman for the next campaign, when they will hope to be defending a league title – they are currently eight points clear at the top of the table with 12 left to play for.
They also seem destined for Champions League football, which has long been thought essential in Osimhen’s thinking when deciding where he will play next season.
Turkish outlet Skorer claim that all of this is leading to the 26-year-old remaining at Rams Park next season, with the club able to find the funds for the big-money player after all.
Skorer explain that sponsorship deals have “completely overcome” the obstacle of Osimhen’s sizeable price tag, and that Galatasaray “can send the €66m payment to Napoli as soon as Osimhen says “yes”’.
Galatasaray, it is claimed, are looking at a slightly reduced price compared to their rivals, having already paid a €9m loan fee which will be taken off the full asking price of €75m.
The Turkish giants seem ready to throw everything they have at securing Osimhen for another season and, according to Skorer, are even willing to make the player a special deal.
Their managers are understood to have told him to come and play for the club in the Champions League, stay for one year and, if he desires, they will let him leave the next season.
As a result, the outlet insist that “the 26-year-old centre forward is gradually getting closer to staying at Galatasaray”, and claim that his price is “too high” for United.
Much like previous instalments of the Osimhen saga it’s a surprising twist in the tale, and it’s hard to know how much to believe.
What is certain is the growing interest in the man Ruben Amorim would love to have leading his line next season, and with every new club interested United’s chances of securing him dwindle.
Reports broke yesterday that fierce rivals Liverpool have joined the race for the potent goalscorer, but at almost the same time other reports claimed that United had held talks with the player’s agents over an Old Trafford move.
Featured image Ahmad Mora via Getty Images
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Joe Ponting Joe has spent more than half his life writing about football and all of it following United. As a child he told a doctor his name was ‘Paul Scholes’, but could never pick a pass like him no matter how much he tried.
