Two in one news as United do look for striker options in January and it’s no secret that Napoli’s Nigerian hero Osimhen is a major target for the club. He is currently on loan at Galatasaray until the end of the season.
However, should MUFC want to sign the 25-year-old, they will have to rival PSG as the French champions are also interested in the striker.
Sacha Tavolieri, a Belgian reporter, says that “Manchester United are showing an interest in Victor Osimhen (25), with Napoli looking for a fee as high as €75m (£62m). PSG have also shown an interest in the Nigerian ahead of the January transfer window.”
He also says that United “are already in contact with striker Victor Osimhen's representatives – personal terms would not be an issue.
The hardest part will be talking with Napoli, who still expect up to £62m. United are ready to consider the transfer.”
As you can see, United are looking at a January move for the center-forward in an attempt to bolster their attack. While £62m is his release clause, Napoli will probably be asking for much more with Osimhen’s contract with the Italian club set to expire in June 2027 after extending his deal by one year.
United are struggling up top this season with both Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee not really stepping up to the plate. The pair have scored just 11 goals in 45 matches between the two.
Despite their young age (Hojlund 21, Zirkzee 23), fans are becoming increasingly frustrated and impatient with the two centre-forwards.
This has caused the supporters and club to want to bring in a new man to lead the front line with Osimhen being one of those at the top of the list.
Rashford wants to leave
James Ducker of The Telegraph says that the 27-year-old has decided to LEAVE the club via The United Stand.
This all comes after he did the interview with Henry Winter last week in which he said that he’s open to a new challenge suggesting that his time at Old Trafford has ended.
From the derby win on Sunday 15 December, Rashford has been excluded from the match day squad in the following two games against Spurs and Bournemouth. Three games in a row of Rashford not being in the squad with manager Ruben Amorim citing that he “has to fight for a place in the team.”
Rashford has been called out for his poor performances for a long time and this season has been no different. The forward has 10 goals and assists in 24 appearances this season which is nowhere near good enough for a player of his quality, age and wage.
His attitude has also been called into question as not only is he not producing in terms of output and overall general play, it looks like he doesn’t care at all.
Many have even asked whether he’s fallen out of love for the game which Rashford denied as in last week’s interview, he said that he still loves football.
Final Thoughts
I was always someone who thought that striker was not necessarily a high priority position for us to strengthen but as this season has gone on, I’m beginning to see that perhaps it is.
I was willing to give Hojlund and then Zirkzee a chance because both are still relatively new and young besides so we cannot be so quick to judge. But something about them suggests that both are backup strikers at the moment and that one more experienced and clinical is what we need.
In recent weeks, whenever Hojlund has started, he’s looked flat. Zirkzee then comes on and looks a little livelier and makes a bit of an impact. This does enough to warrant him a start in the next match.
He then starts only to have a poor performance with Hojlund coming on to make that impact warranting him a start in the next match.
And the cycle continues.
Neither do enough to make us feel like we have someone up front who makes us stronger and can be the difference maker in a particular match.
I do believe we are better and more suited with a proper centre-forward like Hojlund compared to whatever Zirkzee is but it’s looking less likely that either can be the man to lead the line, at least for the moment.
In terms of who could come in and be that guy, Osimhen is a really good option. He’s been arguably the most sort-after striker in football since that incredible season in which he scored 26 Serie A goals to help Napoli win their first Scudetto in 33 years.
The Nigerian has scored a total of 76 goals in 133 appearances for the Italians and has now netted 12 times in 15 games for Galatasaray so far, 2 of which came in their 5-1 win over Kayserispor on Sunday. The Turkish club sit a comfortable 8 points ahead of rivals Fenerbahce at the top of the table.
Osimhem’s play style and attributes is one of the complete number 9: he is big, strong, brilliant in the air, has good hold up play and is of course very clinical. Those attributes would all mean that he would suit Amorim ball really well and could potentially be that Viktor Gyokeres-type striker for United.
But one of the issues he faces and one that all of the recent strikers at United has faced is the lack of chances created. Often, the number 9 is starved of goal scoring opportunities with the term ‘graveyard shift’ being associated with this lack of chances.
Strikers are judged on the goals they score and that is only possible when the team around them makes those chances. Yet even then, I would like a bit more from my striker in terms of him being more involved in the game. Neither of Hojlund nor Zirkzee do that enough.
As for Rashford, I’ve already said that I would like to see him go for several reasons one of which is financial. Should he leave, Rashford will free up around £60m in wages with four years left on his contract and over £300K-a-week on his current deal.
That along with the potential £40m that United are asking for for the 27-year-old, could be enough to fund the transfer of Osimhen in January as that is when Rashford could depart MUFC.
Amorim has also said in a recent interview that “I'm always here for helping Marcus as another player. They chose to do that interview, it's not just Marcus, and I understand that”, via Fabrizio Romano. This indicates that the manager thinks it wasn’t just Rashford’s choice to do that interview and suggests that perhaps the manager feels that the forward has the wrong people around him, something else that many have thought could be a reason as to why Rashford is underperforming.
This all comes after Amorim said that he would rather have spoken to the manager instead of a journalist had he been in the same situation as Rashford during his playing days. This puts some more pressure onto the player in that the manager may not have liked him doing that interview and would rather he had spoken to him instead.
Amorim has also stated that he wants to help Rashford but that the player also has to ‘want it’ in terms of trying to get better off his own accord.
I think his time at the club is over and it’s time for him to move on. This would also mean that we will have a chance of getting Osimhen which I will definitely be happy with.
These two deals for me would make sense for all parties.
Background Image: Victor Osimhen scoring for Galatasaray | Image credit: Getty Images via Eurosport