Fenerbahce Board Hopeful Uslu Praises Osimhen but Rules Out Transfer: ‘His Destinations Are Clear’

A prospective Fenerbahçe board member has spoken candidly about Victor Osimhen, praising the Nigerian forward’s impact on Turkish football while acknowledging that a transfer to the Kadıköy club is effectively impossible.

Mahmut Uslu, who is aligned with a candidate seeking the Fenerbahçe presidency, addressed the subject in an interview with HT Spor, citing Osimhen as the benchmark against which Fenerbahçe must measure their squad-building ambitions. “We will build a squad that can stop a team with Osimhen,” Uslu said. “If we make Kadıköy unbeatable, we will be champions.”

Asked directly which Galatasaray player he would most want to bring to Fenerbahçe, Uslu named Osimhen without hesitation — before immediately ruling out any prospect of such a move. “Who wouldn’t want a player like Osimhen?” he remarked. “But he won’t come to us. His destinations are clear.”

The 27-year-old Nigerian international returned to Galatasaray last summer after the club triggered his €75 million release clause, making him the most expensive signing in Turkish football history. Since rejoining the reigning Süper Lig champions, Osimhen has recorded 59 goals and 16 assists across 74 appearances in all competitions. He has also scored 20 goals across competitions in back-to-back seasons for the club, playing a central role in Galatasaray’s most recent Süper Lig title triumph.

Osimhen, a former African Footballer of the Year, is contracted to Galatasaray until 2029. Despite that long-term commitment, he has attracted reported interest from several of Europe’s biggest clubs, including Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, and Arsenal, according to reports.

Uslu’s comments reflect the broader reality of the Istanbul derby rivalry, where direct player transfers between Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe are essentially unheard of. The two clubs have historically been fiercely competitive both on and off the pitch, and any such move would be considered extraordinary in Turkish football circles.

With Fenerbahçe’s presidential elections approaching, squad construction and the club’s ability to compete with a Galatasaray side built around a striker of Osimhen’s calibre will likely remain a key talking point among candidates and their respective boards. Uslu’s framing of Osimhen as the competitive standard Fenerbahçe must rise to meet signals the scale of the challenge facing the club as they look to close the gap on their city rivals.