Nigerian centre-forward Osimhen broke his personal goal record last Saturday as he scored 33 goals and provided eight assists in 37 appearances. Santi Ona, a transfer expert for France's Foot Mercato, said Manchester United had their first meeting with him on Monday. Allegedly, during the negotiations, Osimhen's agent still demanded an annual salary of 12 million euros.
According to him, United's targets include Dzhekerish, Osimhen and Liam Delap, as well as another unnamed European striker. At the moment, Ruben Amorim has not yet confirmed the final new no.9 and may not be decided until the outcome of Champions League qualification is confirmed.
Osimhen, who has been loaned to Galatasaray by Napoli this season, is expected to win the league title and the Golden Boot. However, his loan contract does not include a buyout clause, and he must leave Napoli, and it is said that he personally wants to join the Premier League, but the only one who can meet his annual salary requirement of 12 million euros is probably the Saudi Arabian professional league.
Because the annual salary of 12 million euros is the amount after tax, according to the customary saying of the Premier League, this means a weekly salary of 400,000 pounds! According to Italy's newspaper La Repubblica, two Middle Eastern clubs that can participate in the Club World Cup, Riyadh Crescent in Saudi Arabia and Al Ain in the United Arab Emirates, are both interested in paying 75 million euros in liquidated damages and 12 million euros in after-tax annual salaries.
Under Napoli's contract, any club outside of Italy could bypass the 26-year-old Osimhen by activating the €75 million default clause. Manchester United and Middle Eastern teams fit the bill, so they can approach them.
Osimhen scored twice against Sivas Sport on Saturday to break his previous record of 31 goals in all competitions. The stats show that he has scored 173 goals in 301 career games, which is better than United's rumoured other striker, Djekereish, who has scored 187 goals in 362 games.
After breaking the record, Osimhen said: "Yesterday I broke my personal record of 31 goals in a single season for the club and now I have scored 33 goals. The same desire, the same mentality. It's not just a matter of numbers, it's about God, it's about growth, it's about silent and tireless work, louder than any noise of criticism."
Osimhen explained, "Those who sit behind the screen and want me to fail, I'm sorry for letting you down. As for those who have supported me in the past and in the future, I sincerely thank all of you. God is the greatest, and He is in control of everything. But the record is not for the sake of quelling the noise, but for the sake of my wonderful family and a handful of loyal friends who never cease to put their trust in me. Your love and support inspires me every step of the way, and it's dedicated to you. We're not done yet, God is just getting started."
United are sure to bring in a new centre-forward in the summer window, but who will likely be selected will not be known until the Europa League final at the end of this month. At the moment, rumours will be circulating between Osimhen, Dzheereish and Liam Drap because, as Italian transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has said, United themselves are yet to be conclusive.
Manchester United's transfer rumours never stop, with Spain's Fichajes transfer network claiming that the club has made a £13 million offer for Leicester City's 16-year-old winger Jake Evans (Jake Evans)。 Manchester United and Tottenham have both made offers for Evans, with the young Englishman making his first-team debut for Leicester City last month and scoring 10 goals in the second tier of the Premier League for the Fox reserves.