Osimhen: Why I rejected Barca,Arsenal offers
Super Eagles star, Victor Osimhen, has revealed why he rejected the offers of La Liga giants, Barcelona and Premier League side, Arsenal after he won the FIFA Under-17 World Cup with Nigeria.
According to him, he preferred to pitch tents with the Bundesliga side Wolfsburg to commence his professional career in Germany before crossing to France to play for Lille.
The Lille star revealed a host of top clubs were interested in his services after winning the golden boot at the FIFA U-17 World Cup.
In an interview on Nigerian info FM, Osimhen revealed he spoke with Arsene Wenger, but he signed for Wolfsburg because of guaranteed playing time.
Although his spell at Wolfsburg was unsuccessful, he signed for the team because they were the only team that promised him first-team football.
I spoke with Arsene Wenger on the phone and he told me how he wanted me to play,” Osimhen told lead anchor Buchi Onokala on the show.
“After the tournament, Arsenal wanted to sign me, they were desperate to have me. The first team wasn’t promised at the time even when I complete 18.
“I sat down with my family, mostly my elder brother. We had the likes of so many European teams that you can think of – Barcelona, Inter Milan, Atletico Madrid, Arsenal, Ajax, Anderlecht, Wolfsburg was there also; Spartak Moscow in Russia,” the Lille hotshot revealed.
The Super Eagles star revealed he decided to go for Wolfsburg after speaking with his brother, and he has no regrets despite making just 14 appearances for them.
“I spoke to my brother and he gave me some candid advice and he said I think you should pick Wolfsburg because the coach wanted you so much than the rest.”
“Sometimes, what you imagine is not what you get. So it didn’t work out well and I was really sad it couldn’t work out well because I really had a point to prove but sometimes life is like this so you have to accept it,” The Lille striker said.
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Following his time at Wolfsburg, Osimhen’s career has soared with the 20-year-old currently tearing defences apart in the Ligue 1.