‘Blockbuster’ Man Utd striker claim as £100m ace tipped to join

Manchester United manager Michael Carrick and director of football Jason Wilcox

Manchester United could move for Victor Osimhen in January to solve their striker problems, a report has suggested.

Osimhen has long been linked with a sensational move to the Premier League. He grew up idolising Chelsea hero Didier Drogba and came close to joining the Blues in the summer of 2024.

Chelsea had entered advanced talks with Napoli for Osimhen, only for the deal to collapse over the Nigerian’s wage demands.

Osimhen went on to join Galatasaray instead, and he has continued scoring at a frightening rate in the Super Lig.

Osimhen has been linked with a switch to Man Utd across several recent transfer windows, as he has the ability to be playing on a bigger stage.

The Athletic’s Laurie Whitwell revealed on Thursday that United will pursue a new centre-forward in January, and the Express has named Osimhen among five players INEOS could potentially move for.

They write that United might open talks over a ‘blockbuster transfer’ for the 27-year-old.

But it would take ‘serious investment’ from United as Galatasaray want over £80m to sell him, and likely as much as £100m.

The report goes on to name Igor Matanovic (Freiburg), Troy Parrott (Real Betis), Jean-Philippe Mateta (Crystal Palace) and Charalampos Kostoulas (Brighton) as other possible solutions for Michael Carrick’s side.

Whitwell, meanwhile, has stated that Man Utd are considering a move for Dominic Calvert-Lewin. However, the deal is seen as difficult as Leeds United do not want to sell to their rivals.

Several pundits have spoken about Osimhen’s potential arrival at Old Trafford.

Earlier this week, ex-Liverpool and QPR forward Djibril Cisse said: “Victor Osimhen has the profile to play in England.

“I think Manchester United could suit him, and I believe there was already some interest at the start of the year or last year.

“He loves the Premier League. He’s unpredictable, he scores goals, he’s complete, he has the profile for English football, and I think that’s what United are missing right now.”

In July 2025, Rio Ferdinand said: “I’m like a broken record. If anyone listens to my podcast, I’ve said Osimhen for a while now.

“He’s a centre-forward, he’s experienced, he knows how to score goals at the top level. I’ve seen today that Galatasaray have put a £50m bid in.

“I mean, £50m to get a top-class striker, one of the top strikers in the world, is absolute peanuts in today’s market. I’ll be disappointed if he goes to Galatasaray for that type of money when Man United are crying out for a No. 9.”

Fabrizio Romano has also provided his information on United’s pursuit of a new striker.

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