Napoli striker Victor Osimhen claims he turned down a move to Arsenal five years ago when Arsene Wenger was still manager.

The Nigerian international has scored six goals in six appearances this season, and he has been linked with Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea in recent days.

However, back in 2016, Osimhen was at the Ultimate Strikers Academy in his homeland when he was contacted by Wenger about moving to the Emirates. He claims he rejected the Gunners, along with a number of other high profile teams, to move to Wolfsburg instead:

“I spoke with Arsene Wenger after the tournament (Under-17 World Cup) ended and he wanted me to come to Arsenal.  I had a lot of options. Barcelona, Inter Milan, Atletico Madrid, Juventus and the rest. Arsenal was a good option but it wasn’t the best at the time. I wanted to start playing as soon as I turned 18. I wanted to go to a place where I had time to invest in my game and improve physically. Wolfsburg showed me that possibility.”

Reports in the Italian press claim Napoli now value Osimhen at around €120m (£104m). It seems like another ‘what might have been’ for Arsenal, who have missed out on a number of youngsters over the years.

It is believed that the Gunners did try to sign the Nigerian for a second time, before his €80m (£69m) move to Napoli last summer, but it seems that the Serie A side were always the favourites for the forward’s signature.