Ten Hag determined to get Weghorst upgrade Osimhen
Manchester United are reportedly leading the Premier League charge for Nigeria born Napoli striker Victor Osimhen as they look to sign a new striker in the summer, whether they decide to keep Wout Weghorst or not.
Weghorst joined the Red Devils from Burnley on loan in January, and the Dutchman has one goal and two assists to his name from 12 games.
But the striker was always seen as a stopgap signing by Erik ten Hag, ahead of a summer in which they will look to sign a goalscorer.
Osimhen has frequently been linked with Old Trafford and has been in fine form this term, scoring 21 goals in 25 games to drive Napoli towards the Scudetto.
The Nigeria international’s contract expires in 2025 and although Napoli are willing to break their salary structure to retain his services, according to Italian journalist Ciro Venerato, the Serie A side will wait to see if “indispensable offers arrive”, with United tipped to be among those in contact.
“Napoli have made it known that they are willing to go beyond the levels imposed on the salary cap for the Nigerian,” Venerato told 1 Football Club (via Sport Witness).
“However, it will be necessary to see if the so-called indispensable offers will arrive. The auction, by now, has already begun, and not only in the Premier League, [Manchester] United above all.
“In fact, PSG could be a club interested in the striker, in which case we will also have to wait for the evolution of the technical guide. Everything is open, we will have to wait for the end of the season for further developments.
“We need to understand how the Napoli market wouldn’t change even in the event of a Scudetto. The management would always go for certain profiles, with a rather low-cost base. In fact, the contracts that players are offered are always for a duration of 4-5 years, and this does not allow them to be linked to players with an already high salary.”
Former United defender Rio Ferdinand has urged his former club to spend big to land Osimhen.
“I think if I was talking about investing and looking after my money, I’d probably go for Osimhen,” Ferdinand told BT Sport.
“There’s resale value with his age at 24 years old. It’s gonna be a huge outlay.
“I’d take either. I’ve got be honest with you, if Manchester United add either of those two players you mentioned to their roster they become title contenders. On form he’s [Osimhen] flying.
“You’ve got Rashford and him who are absolutely flying in terms of form. But when you talks about the best players in the world, the Mbappes of this world are still levels above.”
