Istanbul/Liverpool, October 1, 2025 – Victor Osimhen’s Champions League heroics against Liverpool weren’t just a personal triumph; they were a pointed indictment of the Reds’ summer striker splurge. Hours after his clinical 16th-minute penalty sank Arne Slot’s side 1-0 at RAMS Park – a result that amplified the post-match chaos leading to Slot’s shock sacking – the Galatasaray loanee unleashed a transfer bombshell in a raw Turkish TV interview, revealing he nixed a lucrative Anfield move last summer solely because of one new arrival’s “frustrating” individualism. “When I found out that Liverpool wanted to bring him in last summer, that alone was enough to make me turn down any chance of joining them because I knew I couldn’t play alongside him,” Osimhen confessed to TRT Spor, his voice laced with disdain. “His style of football really frustrates me and as everyone witnessed in tonight’s game, he only proved my point by being too selfish with the ball instead of playing as a team player.”
The unnamed culprit? Insiders and tactical breakdowns point squarely at Hugo Ekitike, the £79 million French forward plucked from Paris Saint-Germain in July as Liverpool’s bold No. 9 experiment.75c47a Ekitike, a towering 6’4″ presence with raw pace but a reputation for solo runs, started up top in Istanbul but flamed out spectacularly: zero shots on target from 47 touches, a misplaced pass in the buildup to Osimhen’s penalty, and a second-half injury sub that left the attack toothless. Osimhen, who won 12 of 15 duels and terrorized Ibrahima Konaté, didn’t mince words: “I studied their tapes – the energy’s there, but him? Hogging possession, ignoring runs from Salah or Diaz. It’s ego over empire. Tonight, he bottled a clear cutback to Frimpong; that’s not Liverpool DNA.” The Nigerian’s critique echoes Thierry Henry’s CBS analysis post-match, where the Arsenal icon flipped the script: “Ekitike’s selfishness nearly gifted us a goal – if he’d passed, Liverpool equalize early.”788d29 X users piled on, with clips of Ekitike’s errant dribble in the 23rd minute going viral: “Osimhen called it – Ekitike’s a ball magnet with no outlet. Slot’s legacy? £204m on forwards who flop,” tweeted @LFCTransferRoom, racking 67k views.11793a
Flashback to July: Liverpool, flush from a title-winning 2024/25 under Slot, tabled €120 million for Osimhen amid Napoli’s fire sale, envisioning a dream tandem with Mohamed Salah. Napoli accepted; Osimhen’s camp greenlit terms. But whispers from his advisors – after dissecting Ekitike’s PSG cameos, where the 23-year-old’s assist rate languished at 0.2 per 90 – halted it cold. “Victor’s a link-up beast – 15 assists last season,” agent Roberto Moresco later spilled to Gazzetta dello Sport. “Ekitike? He’s a lone wolf; clashes with team-first setups. Victor saw the footage: selfish shots from tight angles, no hold-up play. Why join chaos?” Instead, Galatasaray snapped him on a €6 million loan with €75m buyout, where he’s bagged 23 goals in 29 outings. Liverpool pivoted to Ekitike, bundling Darwin Núñez in a part-swap, but the gamble’s soured: Ekitike’s three goals in nine starts mask a -2.1 xG differential, with fans dubbing him “Hugo Selfish.”207467
The irony stings deeper post-Istanbul. Osimhen’s strike – slotted central as Alisson dove right – stemmed from Dominik Szoboszlai’s rash lunge on Barış Alper Yılmaz, but Ekitike’s preceding turnover in midfield invited the counter.1371c5 “He proved my point,” Osimhen hammered. “Selfish with the ball – no quick release, no vision. Liverpool’s got Salah, a magician; why not feed him? I couldn’t thrive there; it’d be me feeding him, not vice versa.” Arne Slot, before his axing, defended the signing in a pre-match huddle: “Hugo’s our facilitator – raw, but evolving.”222b76 Too late; with Slot gone and interim boss Sipke Hulshoff facing Manchester City sans Ekitike (hamstring doubt), the board’s £204m front-line bet – Ekitike plus £125m Alexander Isak – reeks of misfire. Sources say John W. Henry regrets bypassing Osimhen, now a €130m Premier League magnet for Arsenal or Chelsea.
Anfield’s meltdown has galvanized Galatasaray: Osimhen’s Superman cape tunnel strut drew 52k roars, vaulting them to third in the UCL table.d274fc “Liverpool motivated us – their chaos was our cue,” he grinned, eyeing a deep run. For the Reds, 14th after Palace’s 2-1 upset, Osimhen’s slam is poetic justice: the £65m man they courted now exposes their £79m folly. As #EkitikeEgo trends with 120k posts – memes of him dribbling into traffic – one fan’s verdict cuts: “Osimhen dodged a bullet; we loaded a blank.” With Rúben Amorim floated as Slot’s heir and Ekitike’s future cloudy, Liverpool’s summer sins haunt. Osimhen? He’s thriving, untethered – a team player who spurned selfishness, and won.
