ANDREW EKEJIUBA
Victor Osimhen has revealed the reasons why he shunned interests from Barcelona, Arsenal and other teams that wanted his services after he won the Golden Boot award at the 2015 U-17 World Cup in Chile.
The gangling Nigerian striker, who ended up signing for German Bundesliga club Wolfsburg, where he spent two and a half years before a permanent move to Lille in August 2019, revealed that he wanted to develop his game at Wolfsburg in order to become a terrific striker.
Recently, the Ultimate Strikers product is back on the radar of several glamorous teams in Europe after a breakout season in France that saw him score 18 goals in all competitions and was recently awarded the Prix Marc-Vivien Foé as the best African player in the Ligue 1.
Osimhen told reporters, “Shortly after the Under 17 World Cup in 2015, many Euro clubs were looking for me: Barcelona, Juventus, Arsenal and Inter. But I wanted to grow, development was important for me so that I could become a good striker.
“Wolfsburg was a good option for me; I spoke to their coach and he told me it would be a choice.”
Osimhen has established himself as a regular starter for the Super Eagles ever since his mentor, Manchester United’s Odion Ighalo, called time on his international career shortly after the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.
He said, “Playing for Nigeria? Every player dreams of wearing the national team shirt; for me, it was beautiful from day one, a great privilege.
“Nigeria produces a lot of talent and has produced them over the years; just think of names like Nwankwo Kanu and Jay-Jay Okocha.”