Watford FC Legend Troy Deeney Expresses Surprise at Nigerian Striker Victor Osimhen’s Move Over Watford FC
Former Watford captain Troy Deeney has voiced his astonishment at Napoli striker Victor Osimhen’s decision to snub a potential move to the Hornets, describing the Nigerian international as the kind of “game-changing” talent that could have propelled the club back to the Premier League. Speaking on the *Up Front* podcast with Simon Jordan, Deeney, who spent 11 years at Vicarage Road and remains the club’s ninth-highest goalscorer, admitted he was “genuinely shocked” that Osimhen’s camp had dismissed Watford’s interest out of hand during the summer transfer window.
The 26-year-old Osimhen, fresh from a stellar 2022-23 season in Serie A where he scored 26 league goals to fire Napoli to their first Scudetto in 33 years, was briefly linked with Watford as the Championship side explored ambitious targets under new ownership. Sources close to the club revealed that sporting director Cristiano Giaretta had tabled an audacious loan-to-buy proposal worth up to £35 million, including add-ons tied to promotion. The deal would have seen Osimhen reunite with former Napoli teammate Kalidou Koulibaly, now on loan at Watford from Al-Hilal, and work under manager Tom Cleverley, who was keen to build an attack around the African star.
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Deeney, now a pundit and youth coach, didn’t mince words. “Victor’s a top-five striker in world football right now—pace, power, aerial ability, the lot,” he said. “When I heard Watford were in for him, I thought, ‘Finally, someone’s thinking big.’ To see it fall through because his people didn’t even entertain it? That hurts. We’re not talking about a mid-table Championship club here; we’re Watford—Premier League pedigree, global fanbase, and a project that’s crying out for a marquee name.”
Osimhen ultimately joined Galatasaray on a season-long loan in September after a turbulent summer at Napoli, where a contract dispute and failed moves to Chelsea and Al-Ahli left him in limbo. The Turkish giants secured his services with an option to buy for €75 million, a figure Watford could never match outright. Yet Deeney believes the rejection was less about money and more about perception. “Agents look at the Championship and see ‘second tier,’” he continued. “They don’t see the platform. Look at what Ollie Watkins did at Brentford before Villa, or Ivan Toney. Osimhen could’ve scored 30 goals here, dragged us up, and walked into any top-six Premier League side next summer. Instead, he’s in Istanbul fighting for the Super Lig.”
Watford’s pursuit of Osimhen was part of a broader strategy shift following the Pozzo family’s reduced involvement and the arrival of new investment from American consortium Horizon Sports. The club has already splashed out £18 million on players like Koulibaly and Rocco Vata, signaling intent. Cleverley, speaking after Saturday’s 2-1 win over Swansea, refused to dwell on the near-miss but acknowledged the ambition. “We’re not afraid to ask,” he said. “Victor’s a world-class player, and we wanted to show we’re serious about promotion. It didn’t happen, but the fact we were in the conversation says something.”
For Deeney, the snub is symptomatic of a deeper issue in English football’s second tier. “Clubs like Watford, Leeds, or Burnley can offer 40,000-seater stadiums, global TV revenue, and a direct path to the Premier League’s £100 million jackpot,” he argued. “But players and agents still see the Championship as a step down. Until that changes, we’ll keep losing out to Saudi Arabia or Turkey.”
Osimhen has wasted no time in Turkey, scoring four goals in his first six appearances for Galatasaray, including a brace against Besiktas. Meanwhile, Watford sit seventh in the Championship, unbeaten in five, with Vakoun Bayo and Edo Kayembe shouldering the goalscoring burden. Deeney, though, remains convinced the club dodged a bullet in missing out on a player of Osimhen’s caliber. “Imagine him in yellow, feeding off Giorgi Chakvetadze’s service, with Koulibaly behind him,” he mused. “That’s not a Championship team—that’s a Premier League one.”
As the January window approaches, Watford are expected to revisit their striker search, with names like Sunderland’s Jack Clarke and Coventry’s Viktor Gyökeres under consideration. But for Deeney, the Osimhen saga will linger as a “what if” moment. “Football’s about timing,” he concluded. “We knocked on the door of a superstar, and he didn’t answer. Fair play to Galatasaray, but mark my words—if we go up this season, the next Victor Osimhen will be listening.”
The Hornets’ promotion push continues this weekend against Millwall, where Cleverley’s side will aim to prove they can thrive without a galactico. For Deeney, the dream of seeing Osimhen in Vicarage Road may be over, but the ambition it ignited burns brighter than ever.