SCORENigeria lists the Top 5 transfer targets for the New Year with one of such set for another record-breaking move most likely in the summer to the Premier League.
5.Gift Orban
Against most expectations, he did not make a big-money move from Gent last summer on the back of a sensational run that saw him score 22 goals in the second round of the season in Belgium. It was understood Gent may have outpriced him from the market with a 30 Million Euros valuation. This season, the Belgian club will be forced to sell him for far less because his goals have dried up and he is not happy he is no longer guaranteed a first-team spot. Most likely destination will be Ligue 1, which will suit him nicely because he speaks French.
4.Kelechi Iheanacho
The striker looks set to return to the Premier League and not necessarily with Leicester City. It is not likely he will sign a new deal at Leicester and so he will walk away a free agent in the summer, when his contract runs out. Several Premier League clubs like Aston Villa and Crystal Palace have already linked with the former Manchester City and his agents are very powerful in England.
3.Wilfred Ndidi
The second Leicester City star who dropped down to the English Championship after relegation from the Premier League last season. Like the club, he has flourished in the second-tier league. ‘The Foxes’ are eight points clear at the top of the Championship more than halfway through this very demanding competition, while the usually defensive midfielder Ndidi has shone in a more attacking role to now deliver a handful of assists and goals. He has been linked to some top clubs like Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich as well as Real Madrid. His updated Transfermarkt value is 18 Million Euros, but he is most likely to also walk out on Leicester a free player in the summer.
2.Victor Boniface
He has been one of the best summer signings in the Bundesliga with his remarkable numbers and awards with Bayer Leverkusen in his debut season. This was after a sensational only season in Belgium with Union St.Gilloise. His updated Transfermarkt value will be around the 40 Million Euros mark, which is double what he cost Leverkusen last summer. Many top clubs across Europe can afford this new price, but it is believed that his German club will do everything to hold on him at least in the January 2024 transfer window. Serie A clubs Milan, Juventus and Napoli are on the chase as well as Arsenal in the Premier League, but how serious these interests are will be tested much more in the summer.
1.Victor Osimhen
The CAF Player of 2023 may have signed a new deal that keeps him at Napoli till June 2026, but it has not deterred some of Europe’s top teams to continue to cast envious eyes on him. A release clause of 130 Million Euros has been inserted in the new contract and this will be met in the summer for a striker, who has proved he knows his way to goal. The Premier League remains his most likely destination with Chelsea and Arsenal among the front runners for his much-priced signature.
