Victor Osimhen expressed his excitement at completing a loan switch to Galatasaray. He revealed that he had spoken to his former Napoli teammate, Dries Mertens, before deciding to move to the Turkish giant.
The Nigerian striker, who has been frozen out of the first team, secured a Galatasaray loan and is hoping to secure a move in January.
Excited, Osimhen arrived in Istanbul on Monday night, met by a rapturous reception at the airport despite getting in at around 3 a.m. local time.
He seemed to get along with the fans, enjoying a moment with them upon his arrival. The Nigerian striker will spend the 2024-25 season on loan with Galatasaray after a permanent move away from Napoli fell through on deadline day.
Osimhen, who had an agreement with Paris Saint-Germaine, also talked with Al-Ahli and Chelsea, but neither could reach a deal.
To avoid being left out of the Napoli first team, he swiftly agreed to a deal with Galatasaray, who are expected to cover the player’s wages for the season.
The 25-year-old was in good spirits upon his arrival in Turkey. He was seen taking pictures, interacting with fans, and starting chants in the airport’s arrivals area.
Speaking with the local media, the current African footballer of the year was excited about playing with Mertens again.
“The atmosphere is incredible. It’s great to be here and to see Mertens again. I spoke to him before coming here,” Osimhen said via Corriere dello Sport.
Meanwhile, recent statistics have shown that Osimhen is the third striker behind Cristiano Ronaldo and the Brazilian Ronaldo with a better minutes-per-goal ratio in Italy’s top flight.
Antonio Conte had already expressed his disappointment that Osimhen was not part of his plan, having indicated that he wanted Romelu Lukaku. The latter finally signed for the club and opened his goal account last week.
According to Opta on X, formerly Twitter, Osimhen has left Serie A with the third-best minutes per goal ratio in the three points for a win era.
It further analyzed that Osimhen scored one goal every 125 minutes at Napoli. Only ex-Juventus star Cristiano Ronaldo (one goal every 104 minutes) and ex-Inter and Milan striker Ronaldo (one goal every 117 minutes) are better.
“125 – Only Cristiano Ronaldo (one goal every 104 minutes on average) and Ronaldo (one goal every 117′) have a lower minutes/goal on average than Victor #Osimhen (one goal every 125 minutes) in Serie A in the three points for a win era (since 1994/95) – min. 10 goals,” the Opta tweet read.
