Man United “are on” Victor Osimhen as race to land the Napoli striker heats up | OneFootball

Manchester United are reportedly working on a deal to sign Napoli striker Victor Osimhen as the transfer battle to secure his services intensifies.

United are aiming to sign a top-class striker to share some of the goalscoring burden currently on the shoulders of young Rasmus Hojlund.

Despite showing glimpses of his brilliance and what he can bring to the table, it remains abundantly clear that the Dane needs help in leading the line for the Red Devils. He showed the amateur side of his game once more during the club’s frustrating 2-2 draw vs. Bournemouth on Saturday. At the Vitality Stadium, Hojlund was largely ineffective and struggled to make an impact despite playing all 90 minutes.

Already, Erik ten Hag’s side have been linked to top talismans like Brentford’s Ivan Toney, Bologna’s Joshua Zirkzee and Osimhen.

United tried to sign Osimhen last summer, with both he and Harry Kane at the top of Ten Hag’s transfer wishlist. However, neither move came to fruition. Kane completed a switch to Bayern Munich while Osimhen ended up staying at Napoli after leading them to the Scudetto for the first time in three decades.

A previous report covered by The Peoples Person relayed that United and Paris Saint-Germain are the frontrunners to land the Nigerian superstar.

Fellow Premier League strugglers Chelsea have also been mentioned to be in the running for the 25-year-old, who has made no secret of his admiration for Blues legend Didier Drogba.

According to intermediary Malu Mpasinkatu, United will rival Chelsea for Osimhen this summer and both clubs are “on him” – a suggestion that they’re working on a deal to lure him to their respective sides.

Mpasinkatu also notes that Osimhen’s desire is to play in the Premier League – a fact that could edge PSG out of the transfer race.

He said on Radio Goal (via Calcio Napoli 24), “From the information I have, at the moment there is talk of [Marcus] Thuram at PSG instead of Mbappe.”

“The Nigerian (Osimhen) has already played in France; his goal is the Premier League. Manchester United are on him as well as Chelsea. [Jonathan] David? He could be the right profile to replace Osimhen, he is young but has been playing in Europe for several years.”

“He has different characteristics from Osimhen, but he is very strong. Lille are an expensive club, but it’s unlikely that the players they sell do badly.”

Whichever club ends up successfully convincing Osimhen to play for them will almost certainly have to fork out a sum north of €100m.

While he has not been as prolific as he was last term when he finished as the Serie A top scorer, Osimhen still boasts of decent numbers considering how much Napoli have struggled.

He has 14 goals and three assists in 26 appearances across all competitions.

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