Man Utd rejected Osimhen as one ‘concern’ made Ten Hag ‘sceptical’ amid new Toney revelation

Manchester United were reportedly considering signing Nigeria international Victor Osimhen, but they were “sceptical” about the striker for one reason.

The Red Devils have invested heavily to strengthen in attack in recent windows. Last year, they invested an initial fee of around £64m to sign Rasmus Hojlund from Serie A outfit Atalanta.

Man Utd’s lack of options meant Erik ten Hag had to overly rely on the 21-year-old last season. Still, he was one of their better performers as he scored ten Premier League goals in 30 matches.

This summer, Netherlands international Joshua Zirkzee joined Hojlund in signing for the Premier League giants. Around £36m was spent to sign him from Bologna.

In recent windows, Man Utd were linked with several potential alternatives and Osimhen was mentioned as a possible signing.

Napoli’s high asking price had priced Osimhen out of a move elsewhere, but he left in the summer as they were more open to letting him leave.

The Serie A giants replaced him with Romelu Lukaku in the summer and Osimhen eventually joined Turkish giants Galatasaray on loan after Chelsea could not complete a deal on deadline day.

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A new report from ESPN claims Man Utd considered signing Osimhen ahead of the 2023 summer transfer window, but were ‘sceptical’ about the prolific striker.

‘Sources told ESPN that Napoli’s Victor Osimhen was scouted during the 2022-23 season, but concerns were raised over his ability to hold the ball up and also whether Serie A was a strong enough league to truly measure his ability, with Lukaku’s prolific form at Inter cited as a reason to be sceptical of Osimhen’s real quality.

‘In spite of those concerns about Serie A, United then opted to complete a £72m deal for Atalanta’s Højlund, who was just 20 at the time and had scored 10 goals in 34 games for the Italian side.’

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The report has also revealed why Man Utd opted against signing Ivan Toney before he joined Saudi Pro League outfit Al-Ahli on deadline day.

‘Before signing Zirkzee, United had considered a move for Brentford’s Ivan Toney, but sources have said that the England forward was ruled out because he didn’t fit Ten Hag’s profile for the required striker in that, while boasting an impressive strike-rate, he didn’t press defenders energetically enough.’

After United were held to a goalless draw against Crystal Palace at the weekend, Ten Hag admitted his side must “kill more in the box”.

“Concerned? We create a lot of chances in the first games of the season,” Ten Hag said. “Last week we scored seven against Barnsley, so we are capable of scoring many goals.

“But it’s a part of the game we have to be better in, we have to improve and kill more in the box.”