Man Utd restart Osimhen talks as Nigerian becomes a 'PROBLEM'

Tom Weber

• Updated: 13 Jun 2025 15:40 CDT
• 5 min read

News

Manchester United have resumed talks with Victor Osimhen, who is increasingly becoming a problem for Napoli.

The Nigerian is still in limbo over his future despite all parties - but chiefly his parent club Napoli - having been keen on a quick resolution heading into this summer.

Osimhen had the chance to pursue a ridiculously lucrative move to Saudi Arabia, with Al-Hilal offering him as much as €40 million per season. However, the 26-year-old rebuffed the Riyadh giants several times to remain in Europe.

Current ETV

Victor Osimhen

F (C)

Galatasaray

Victor Osimhen

F (C)

Galatasaray

€67.9M

ETV Range

€61.1M - €74.7M

View full profile

According to Gazzetta dello Sport, Napoli were blindsided by Osimhen's decision to reject Al-Hilal. The Serie A champions fully expected him to follow the money after being open to a move to Al-Ahli last summer.

Napoli are desperate to get Osimhen off the books, and the longer this saga drags on, the more of a problem he becomes for the Naples outfit. Indeed, with Al-Hilal seemingly out of the picture, there are concerns that the Italians will again struggle to offload him, just like last year.

Osimhen's future: Man Utd or Galatasaray?

As things stand, and with no imminent decision on the horizon, Osimhen is set for an awkward return to Napoli when he has to report for pre-season in July.

He still has suitors, of course, but the financial package required to sign him is immense. According to Foot Mercato, Man Utd have now resumed talks with the Nigerian, but he is showing no signs of lowering his €12m-per-season salary demands.

This, in conjunction with his €75m release clause, makes a move incredibly difficult to pull off for the Red Devils. But it's not just them who would struggle to afford the superstar striker.

Galatasaray, too, still dream of keeping him long-term after his successful loan. The Turkish giants are willing to break the bank - almost literally - to secure his signature, but it's nearly an impossible undertaking.

Galatasaray are hoping to raise as much as €900m from the sale of their training ground, but the problem with signing Osimhen isn't even a lack of money per se.

Rather, the issue is that the Super Lig has a spending cap that varies depending on a club's income so as to prevent sides from splurging beyond their means in the notoriously volatile Turkish football environment.

Galatasaray, naturally, have more leeway than most Turkish clubs, but even they would struggle to get the budget to pull off a €75m transfer. Last season, the Istanbul giants had a spending limit of €98.34m - this number already included the 30 per cent permitted deviation.

This illustrates why Galatasaray are trying to negotiate a lower fee with Napoli, with the Turkish champions reportedly willing and able to pay around €60m. There is also a foreigner limit that they need to be mindful of, which will require the sale of several players.

At this point, it would be foolish trying to predict where Osimhen will end up this summer, but it's clear that what was supposed to be a quick transfer is again turning into a drawn-out saga.

Football transfer news headlines today

EXCLUSIVE: Arsenal BREAKTHROUGH in Benjamin Sesko transfer

Florian Wirtz is DIFFERENT: Why Liverpool’s record signing is a €135m BARGAIN

CONFIRMED: Nico Williams given permission for contract talks

OFFICIAL: Real Madrid sign Franco Mastantuono in record move

The FootballTransfers app

Check out FootballTransfers' new app for all of football's big storylines, transfer rumours and exclusive news in one convenient place directly on your mobile device.

The FootballTransfers app is available on Google Play and in the Apple App Store. Download here:

•Google Play

•App Store