Osimhen completes transfer deal from Napoli to Galatasaray

Galatasaray has reached a conclusion with Victor Osimhen's transfer from Napoli to the Turkish club giant, as thousands of fans greeted the striker upon his arrival in Istanbul on Wednesday night.

Nigerian star Victor Osimhen, whom Galatasaray has long wanted to sign on a free transfer, arrived at the Atatürk Airport in Istanbul in the company of Galatasaray Sportif AŞ Vice President Abdullah Kavukcu.

“I don’t know what words to use to describe this. I feel amazing to be here. Look at the crowd; look at the people following the plane. I'm home. This is where I want to be. I'm happy to be here, to be back. I'd like to thank our president, Abdullah Kavukcu, George Gardi, Okan Buruk, and everyone who made my return possible,” Osimhen told reporters and fans.

The 26-year-old striker is expected to undergo medicals on Thursday, July 31, and following these checks, the star player will sign a full transfer contract with Galatasaray on August 2, TRT Spor reports.

‘Happy to be here’

“I'd also like to thank the fans who showed me they wanted me, who wanted me as much as I wanted them. I'm happy to be here. As I always say: The story continues. I'm happy to continue this story with Galatasaray," Osimhen added.

Sports agent and manager George Gardi, who also accompanied Osimhen, told reporters the striker's desire to remain at Galatasaray played a significant role in the transfer.

"This was an incredible transfer for the club. The president and Abdullah Kavukcu did a great job. This clearly demonstrates the club's vision and its goal of becoming one of the best clubs in Europe and the Champions League. It was a very complex negotiation process with Napoli, but Victor really wanted to come here. That was the most important thing," Gardi said.

The transfer follows lengthy negotiations with Napoli for Osimhen, who played on loan for the yellow-red team last season.

The striker scored 37 goals and 7 assists in 41 matches and helped Galatasaray lift the Ziraat Turkish Cup with a 3-0 win over Trabzonspor.

The 26-year-old footballer also finished last season as the top scorer in the Trendyol Super League.