Galatasaray has rejected a €125 million deal for Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen, reinforcing their commitment to keeping the Nigerian forward despite rising pressure from European clubs ahead of the summer transfer window.
The deal, published by Forza Cimbom, was instantly rejected by the Turkish champions, who had previously rejected a €120 million approach from Atletico Madrid.
Manchester United, Barcelona, and Atletico Madrid are all interested in signing the 27-year-old, but Galatasaray have made it clear that no bid below their asking price will be considered.
The Istanbul club believes that Osimhen’s exceptional performance since his arrival in Turkey justifies this worth.
The former Napoli striker has 59 goals in 74 appearances for Galatasaray, including 15 league goals and five assists in 22 games this season, as well as seven goals and three assists in 10 UEFA Champions League outings before the club was knocked out by Liverpool in the round of 16.
The club’s determination to maintain Osimhen has been strengthened by the impending departure of Argentine attacker Mauro Icardi, whose contract expires at the end of June.
Losing both strikers in the same window would leave Galatasaray dangerously thin in attack as they seek to maintain their supremacy in the Turkish Super Lig and make a larger impression in Europe the following season.
Chronicle NG reports that Galatasaray are prepared to offer Osimhen both the captain’s armband and the iconic No. 9 jersey—currently occupied by Icardi—as part of a retention strategy designed to give the Nigerian a deeper emotional and symbolic investment in the club’s future.
According to club administrators, such leadership and identity gestures may not be instantly available to Osimhen at teams such as Manchester United, Arsenal, or Chelsea, where established dressing-room hierarchies exist.
Osimhen has consistently stated his appreciation for his time in Istanbul and voiced a wish to stay with the club, but the continued attention from some of European football’s biggest spenders assures his future will be a source of speculation for the rest of the summer.
