Victor Osimhen looks to be closing in on his next move after agreeing to join Turkish side Galatasaray on loan.
The 25-year-old looked on the verge of signing for Chelsea in the final days of the transfer window but refused to accept a much lower wage package from the Premier League club.
Napoli’s former No.9 was also linked with a switch to Saudi Arabia, but interested party Al-Ahli opted to sign Ivan Toney from Brentford instead.
Upon his return to Italy, Osimhen was met with a locked door.
He was not registered as part of the squad for the 2024-25 Serie A season and his shirt number was handed to Romelu Lukaku, who had joined from Chelsea.
Antonio Conte admitted at the start of the summer that there was an agreement in place to let the Nigerian international leave this summer, but with no agreements found, his options have become severely limited.
🔴🟡🇳🇬 Galatasaray have agreed to cover €9/10m as salary of Victor Osimhen until the end of the season.
Loan deal agreed with Napoli does NOT include any buy option/obligation clause.
Mission in Napoli to get Victor’s green light. pic.twitter.com/8GmAs6LmpO
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) September 2, 2024
A loan move to the Super Lig may be his only chance to play any football before the window re-opens in January and it seems he will be reunited with former Napoli team-mate Dries Mertens at Galatasaray.
According to Fabrizio Romano, an agreement is in place between the two clubs, with the deal not including a buy option.
Osimhen is yet to give the final green light as he weighs up the move.
The alternative is playing no football for the best part of four months, which could hinder a future move to a big club.
Unlike most of Europe, Turkey did not have to rush to meet the August 31 deadline.
Clubs can remain active in the market until 13 September, meaning there is no rush for Galatasaray to get their proposed loan over the line.
