Victor Osimhen transfer dilemma: Premier League clubs hesitate over Super Eagles star for these two reasons

For the last two summers, Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen has been the subject of many transfer speculation, but he is yet to get the big move he and many fans want despite his prolific form, Soccernet.ng reports.

Osimhen has established himself as one of the top marksmen in the world over the last three years. Across the last three campaigns with Napoli and Galatasaray, the Super Eagles star has contributed 85 goals and 17 assists in 112 games.

Last summer, it seemed certain that Osimhen would leave Napoli for the Premier League after his impressive exploits.

Get Our Sports News First – Join Our WhatsApp Channel Now!
The 26-year-old striker was linked to the big boys like Manchester United, Chelsea, and Arsenal, but the speculations did not materialize despite dragging into the final hours of the transfer market.

Victor Osimhen of Galatasaray during the Turkish Super League match between Galatasaray and Eyuspor Photo by Icon Sport
Instead Osimhen eventually joined Galatasaray in a season-long loan eventually, after he was frozen out of the team.

In the just-concluded season with Galatasaray, Osimhen was the star of the show with his 37 goals. He won the Golden Boot and led the Lions to win the Turkish Super Lig and the Turkish Cup.

Alvaro Morata L , Przemyslaw Frankowski C and Victor Osimhen R of Galatasaray (Photo by Imago)
Yet, it seems this summer will be a repeat of the last. The talks of a Premier League transfer have started again, but no offer has been made yet.

Meanwhile, the clubs that Osimhen has been linked to are already signing attackers. Manchester United have signed Cunha and are set to sign Bryan Mbeumo.

Chelsea have already confirmed Liam Delap’s signing, and Arsenal seem more interested in Benjamin Sesko or Viktor Gyokeres.

Osimhen’s protracted transfer has raised eyebrows among fans, most of whom believe he has enough talent to shine in the English top-flight.

But transfer expert David Ornstein has shed light into the issue. In an Athletic Football podcast, he revealed that some English clubs are indeed interested in Osimhen. But they have concerns about his character and his profile.

Victor Osimhen (Photo credit: Imago)
They are also unwilling to meet his current wages. Osimhen currently gets close to €200k net per week, and he is unwilling to go below that. If any English club wants to pay him up to that amount, his gross earnings would be over €300k per week due to the high tax rates in England, making him a very expensive acquisition.

Does Victor Osimhen have character issues?
Before last year, many fans looked at Victor Osimhen as a humble footballer. But the public’s perception of him changed last summer, when he called out the then-Super Eagles coach Finidi George on social media.

That event sparked a whole conversation about the Super Eagles striker’s attitude and temperament. That also caused fans to look back at previous situations when he was sent off from Napoli’s training ground by coach Luciano Spalletti.

There was also a time when he openly remonstrated after coach Rudi Garcia subbed him off during a Napoli game.

Then, a few months ago, after Nigeria’s 1-1 draw against Zimbabwe in the 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, Osimhen walked off the pitch in anger, pushing off his teammates who tried to talk to him.

While Osimhen also had some publicized issues with members of his family, these seem to have subside for a while.

Nonetheless, with the transfer market still open for well over three months, the Super Eagles star could still get his move.