Tottenham Considers Osimhen as De Zerbi Seeks Elite Striker

Victor Osimhen has been put on the table for Tottenham Hotspur this summer. Not as a distant fantasy, but as a live option, offered to the club as the Nigerian looks to finally crack English football.

Whether Spurs bite is a far more complicated question.

What is not in doubt is Roberto De Zerbi’s intention. The new head coach wants a genuine, top-tier centre-forward to spearhead his project in north London. As he reshapes the squad in his image, a ruthless No.9 sits near the top of his wish list, the kind of striker who can turn promising build-up play into points and push Tottenham higher up the Premier League.

Osimhen fits that profile almost perfectly. Powerful, relentless, and with a proven eye for goal, he has built a reputation as one of Europe’s most dangerous penalty-box forwards. His desire to test himself in the Premier League has been clear for some time, and intermediaries have made sure several English clubs know he is available. Spurs are among those who have been sounded out.

On the pitch, the attraction is obvious. A finisher of Osimhen’s calibre could transform Tottenham’s attacking edge, sharpen their threat in tight games and give De Zerbi the focal point his system thrives on.

Off the pitch, the picture is far less straightforward.

Solanke, Richarlison and the squeeze up front

For Spurs to move seriously for Osimhen, something has to give. The club would need to clear space in both the squad and the wage bill, and that means a difficult decision on one of their current forwards.

Dominic Solanke has shown glimpses of why Tottenham moved for him, offering link play and penalty-box presence, but injuries have checked his momentum. Richarlison, meanwhile, brings versatility, experience and an edge across the front line, even if his form has fluctuated.

Choosing who, if anyone, to sacrifice is not a simple football call. Dressing-room balance matters. So do the club’s financial regulations and longer-term planning. Spurs cannot afford to get this one wrong: sell the wrong striker, or overcommit on a new one, and the ripple effects could last for seasons.

The Osimhen cost: a statement signing with statement wages

Then there is the money.

Osimhen’s current gross salary stands at €360,000 (£309,000) per week. After a 20 per cent tax rate for professional footballers in Turkey, that leaves him taking home €288,000 (£247,000) per week.

Even at those figures, he would walk into Tottenham as the club’s highest earner by a distance.

England changes the equation again. With a 45 per cent tax rate on wages, Spurs would need to offer a significantly higher gross salary just to match his current net income. To lure him, they would have to go well beyond anything on their existing pay scale and accept the knock-on effect that might have in future negotiations with other stars.

So the decision facing Tottenham’s hierarchy is stark. Osimhen would be a thunderous statement of intent, the kind of signing that announces De Zerbi’s era with a bang. But he only arrives if the club can engineer at least one major outgoing in attack and if they are prepared to smash their wage structure to make the numbers work.

The opportunity is there. The question now is whether Spurs are willing to pay the true price of an elite No.9.