Victor Osimhen celebrates for Galatasaray.
Victor Osimhen might hold a transfer advantage for Manchester United over Viktor Gyokeres.
and are two of Europe's most in-demand strikers right now and continue to be linked with both.
United are in desperate need of a reliable goal-scorer this summer, having not had one under Erik ten Hag. with 24 goals in 2021/2022.
Rasmus Hojlund has regularly seemed out of his depth since arriving at Old Trafford from Atalanta in 2023, leading to successive managers using Bruno Fernandes as a false nine in some matches. It's no coincidence that United have suffered their lowest ever Premier League finish, in successive seasons, when the goals began to dry up for their strikers.
It's why Osimhen and Gyokeres are so, so appealing. There's a sense that signing either player would fix a huge number of problems at M16 and perhaps the biggest one of them all.
Gyokeres has the more impressive stats, with 54 goals across all competitions in 2024/2025, compared to 37 from Osimhen. There is also a sense that the Swede's familiarity of working with United head coach Ruben Amorim from their time at Sporting CP together will work in United's favour.
But there is another factor that few, if anyone, has been discussing. Osimhen first made his name at Napoli and has continued to impress on loan at Galatasaray this season - playing his final match for the Turkish club on Friday night.
Few would argue that Napoli are not a bigger club than Sporting, with Diego Maradona elevating their status as one of Europe's most famous clubs. Sporting, of course, have Ronaldo to boast about, but the Portuguese is more synonymous with United and Real Madrid.
Serie A is also seen as a higher-quality division, with clubs that have more global support than those from Portugal. Osimhen's impact was also greater during his time at Napoli, with his 26 goals playing an important role in their first Scudetto victory in 33 years.
Gyokeres was impressive in Sporting's league title victories, but did not have to carry the same weight of history. Sporting won the Primeira Liga just two seasons before he arrived.
With both players now aged 26 and very little to choose between them talent-wise, being able to cope with the considerable pressure of playing for United is likely to be a key factor. Only Osimhen can offer any real confidence with that, right now.
Get United transfer news and updates on WhatsApp!
Our team of Manchester United experts are on top of all the goings-on at Old Trafford for this week and beyond, and you can get the latest team news, injury updates, reaction and analysis along with inside information to your phone by joining our new free WhatsApp community. You can also join the 50,000 (and growing!) band of United fans who are following our WhatsApp Channel.
Sign up to our community here, and join our WhatsApp channel here.
--
We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Here at The Manchester Evening News, we are dedicated to bringing you the best Manchester United coverage and analysis.
Make sure you don't miss out on the latest United news by joining our free WhatsApp group. You can get all the breaking news and best analysis sent straight to your phone by clicking here to subscribe.
And, finally, if you would rather listen to our expert analysis then make sure to check out our Manchester is Red podcast, featuring The Samuel Luckhurst Show and The Midweek Debate. Our shows are available on all podcast platforms, including and , and you can also watch along on .