Man Utd should not be scared off Osimhen's €120m fee

Carlo Garganese

Updated: 1 Mar 2022 12:03 GMT
4 min read

Victor Osimhen, Napoli v Cagliari, 2021-22 — © ProShots

Manchester United simply must sign a new number nine this summer. That is surely crystal clear by now.

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Cristiano Ronaldo, at the age of 37, no longer has the legs to be the spearhead of the attack – certainly not at the tip of a 4-2-3-1 formation.

In 2022, he no longer even seems to have the goals in him. He has scored just once this calendar year.

In recent days there have been widespread reports that Victor Osimhen has become a main transfer target for Man Utd this summer.

However, it has also been reported that Napoli’s €120 million price tag may put them off.

Man Utd certainly should not be scared away by Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis’ demands.

Osimhen is already one of the most exciting number 9’s in Europe and he has everything in his locker to become a world-class striker.

Right now he is the most complete attacker in Serie A, along with new Juventus star Dusan Vlahovic.

© ProShots - Ronaldo has had a miserable 2022

Osimhen had an explosive start to the 2021-22 season, during which he scored nine goals in 10 games in all competitions as Napoli won their first eight league games of the season to go top.

However, he missed two months of the season due to a nasty facial injury which has prevented him challenging for the Capocannoniere.

Napoli fell away while he was out in December and January but since returning their form has picked up again and they have returned to the top of Serie A. If they are to win a first Scudetto since 1990, Osimhen will have played a massive role in it.

Osimhen is both a modern and traditional number 9. Despite being slender in build, he is an incredibly impressive physical specimen. He boasts lightning pace and acceleration, and exceptional strength and power. His workrate and stamina is also excellent. These are Premier League necessities that Man Utd are crying out for from their striker, qualities Ronaldo can’t offer.

© ProShots - Osimhen has played a key role in Napoli's title challenge

And unlike Ronaldo, the Nigerian is able to play with BOTH his back to goal and on the edge of the offside trap. He is just as capable of holding the ball up and bringing others into play as he is with making intelligent runs behind the defence to get onto the end of through balls.

Like Ronaldo, his movement inside the box is also excellent, as is his ability to find half a yard of space for a shot. Standing at 6ft 1in, Osimhen is superb in the air and has a fantastic leap on him. Just watch the video of his headed goal against Leicester in the Europa League group stages.

In terms of areas for improvement, Osimhen’s finishing is still not quite clinical enough. He can sometimes snatch at chances, like the one in the closing stages of Napoli’s dramatic 2-1 win at Lazio on Sunday. But there is no doubt this will improve and at the age of just 23 he is already incredibly advanced.

Vlahovic, Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland were the three best young strikers in world football heading into 2022. Vlahovic has joined Juventus, Mbappe is seemingly on his way to Madrid, while Man Utd are unlikely to win the race for Haaland.

The next best available for Man Utd is Osimhen, whatever the price.